A listener remembers her grandmother’s colorful comment when someone arrived late after getting lost: You went around your elbow to get to your thumb. Lots of similar sayings in English suggest roundabout routes or overcomplicated tasks, including...
A colloquial apology for telling an overly long story is “Sorry I had to go around my elbow to get to my thumb.” The phrase is also a handy way to indicate you took the opposite of a shortcut. This is part of a complete episode...
The word climb has been sneaking by with that silent b for a while. But speakers of Old English pronounced the b in its predecessor, climban. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Words With Silent B” Hello, you have A Way...
slippa n.— «The state’s struggling visitor industry hopes the Tourist in Chief’s obvious affection for slippas and shakas (Hawaiian slang for flip-flop sandals and a thumb-and-pinky salute) inspires more vacationers to follow his lead...
