If you’ve “seen the elephant,” it means you’ve been in combat. But why an elephant? Martha and Grant also discuss some odd idioms in Spanish, including one that translates as “your bowtie is whistling.” And what...
Shadowdabbled. Moon-blanched. Augusttremulous. William Faulkner often used odd adjectives like these. But why? Grant and Martha discuss the poetic effects of compressed language. Also, African-American proverbs, classic children’s books, pore...
When it comes to language, a listener from Dallas wants to know, as a fellow Texan might put it, “who’s the decider”? Grant explains that nobody makes the rules about language, and everybody does. For those seeking professional...
A new transplant to Dallas wants to assimilate into the Texan way of speaking without offending the locals or forcing any new vocabulary. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Texas Talk” Hi, you have A Way with Words. Good...
Kelly in Milwaukee, a former Texas resident, asks whether Mamaw and Papaw for grandparents are especially Texan. They’re not limited to Texas. Forms such as Mamaw, Papaw, Meemaw, Pawpaw, and Peepaw turn up in families across the country, with Mamaw...
When someone’s fast asleep, a Texan might say that he’s “out like Lottie’s eye.” But who’s Lottie and what happened to her eye? This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Out Like Lottie’s...