Heather from Sacramento, California, wonders about the phrase loaded for bear: Her husband thinks it describes someone who is thoroughly prepared and eager to do something, but her mother-in-law thinks it specifically describes someone belligerent...
Tommy from Carlsbad, California, wonders about an expression his mother used when he would be busily fastidious about cleaning to the point of overdoing it. She would say he was briggling. The verb to briggle is defined in the Dictionary of American...
During a visit to Lee High School in Huntstville, Alabama, we collected a treasure trove of slang, including a term that seems to be particular to the Huntsville area: forf, which as a verb means to fail to follow through on commitments, and as a...
Fadi from Indianapolis wondered why California governor Jerry Brown has been called Governor Moonbeam, especially after the nickname resurfaced in a political Twitter jab. The label came from Chicago newspaper columnist Mike Royko in the 1970s, when...
Shannon from Virginia Beach, Virginia, heard nitnoy in the Navy as a word for something small or insignificant, as in a nitnoy problem. The likeliest source is Thai nit-noi, meaning “a little bit,” with a plausible route through U.S. military...
Vicki from New York City asks about catch you on the flip side, a parting phrase meaning “see you later.” The flip side originally referred to the B side of a vinyl record, especially a 45, but the fuller expression is best documented during the...
