Do you refer to your dog or cat as “somebody”? As in: When you love somebody that much, you don’t mind if they slobber. In other words, is your pet a somebody or a something? Also, for centuries, there was little consistency in the...
Tim is a rancher, dogsledder, and a former commercial fisherman in Alaska. He’s observed that the words rope and line are used differently in each of those professions depending on context, and using them incorrectly can mark a person as a...
Hyperbolic Headlines Will Restore Your Faith In Humanity!!!! Or maybe not. You’ve seen those breathless headlines on the internet, like “You Won’t Believe What This 7-year-old Said to The President!” They’re supposed to...
bareboat charter n.— «The vessel is managed by International Shipholding under what is known as a bareboat charter. That means that IHS handles provisioning and crewing the vessel and then leases it back to Maersk.» —“Shipper says...
Word nerd Ammon Shea quit his job as a furniture mover in New York City to spend an entire year reading the entire Oxford English Dictionary. The result, in addition to eyestrain, headaches, and skeptics’ puzzlement, was Shea’s new book...
Noah’s ark clause n.— «She was just in time for the rules to be changed, and women to be allowed to serve on Navy ships. Gilbride was one of two women serving alongside 1,200 men aboard the USS Frank Cable, a submarine fleet support...