The word sic, meaning “thus” in Latin, is placed in the text when an author knowingly quotes a misspelled word or otherwise incorrect statement. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Known Misspelling in Quote”...
Martha reads a love sonnet by the Chilean poet Pablo Neruda. Here’s the text of the original Spanish, with an English translation by Mark Eisner. And here’s a lovely audio rendering of the poem in Spanish. This is part of a complete...
Howdy! In our latest episode, we discuss why “he’s seen the elephant” means “he’s been in combat.” Also, a look at idioms, like the Spanish one that translates as “your bowtie is whistling.” And what...
Hola, che! In this week’s episode, it’s a game about food names! (“What would you serve to a plumber?” “Leeks.”) We also discuss how to correct a new sweetheart’s grammar, “infracaninophile,”...
Bavarian Chalet. Mushroom Basket. Moose Point. Who in the heck comes up with the names of paints, anyway? Martha and Grant ponder that mystery. They also explain why those annoying emails go by the name spam. And Grant explains the difference...
Predictive text on cellphones can result in some amusing accidental substitutions. The word for that: textonym. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Textonym” Hello, you have A Way with Words. Hi, how are you? Doing well...