Even though blogs can’t read and newspapers can’t speak, it’s totally appropriate to write “the blog reads,” or “the newspaper says.” This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “The Blog...
Scratch an itch is standard, and it’s much more widely accepted than using itch transitively, as in itch my back. Robin in Paris, Virginia, has a movie-night wager riding on the question because his wife insists that the hand does the scratching and...
“Don’t tump over the canoe!” The verb to tump is familiar to folks in many parts of the United States. Use it elsewhere, though, and you might get some quizzical looks. What does it mean and who uses it? The hosts tump over their...
A Michigander wants to know about the difference between titled and entitled. She’d assumed that a book is titled Gone with The Wind and a person is entitled to compensation for something. Grant and Martha explain it’s a little more...
cupcake v. to compete or win with little effort. Editorial Note: Usually transitive, especially in the form cupcake it. Thanks and credit go to Ben Zimmer for his research. Etymological Note: Ben Zimmer has suggested comparisons with other dessert...
thulp v. to overcome in a contest, sport, or fight; to beat, drub, or subdue; to finish off or exhaust. Editorial Note: Usually transitive: to thulp someone or something. Etymological Note: Often said to be a blend of “thump to a pulp.”...