Cobwebs are spiderwebs, especially the dusty, abandoned kind that need sweeping away. Middle English coppe or cop meant “spider” or “round thing,” and cob survives mostly in this compound. A related old word, attercop, combines a word for “poison”...
Quiz Guy John Chaneski has a literature quiz based on descriptions of characters in novels. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Literary Character Quiz” You’re listening to A Way with Words. I’m Grant Barrett...
Some teachers are using a controversial tactic to get young students reading: They let their pupils choose which books to read for class. Does it work? Also, should that line at the grocery store checkout read 15 items or less or fewer? And is the...
Some teachers are using a controversial tactic to get young students reading: They let their pupils choose which books to read for class. Does it work? This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Students Choosing Books”...
When you were a child and wanted to lay claim to something, what did you say? Did you call “dibs”? Or “hosey” it? A caller is curious about another verb used in such situations: “finnie.” Grant explains this...
