Following up on our chat about names for a sandwich on a long roll, a listener from southwestern Connecticut says that there, such a sandwich is called a wedge. For a thorough take on the beloved Cuban sandwich of Florida, check out The Cuban...
Jennifer, an elementary-school teacher in Tallahassee, Florida, loves saying the term chockablock, meaning “closely packed together,” and wonders about its etymology. Chock can refer to a kind of wedge used to hold something in place, and...
day soldier n.— «But they will continue to provide insurgents, I’m sure. What has to happen here is to drive a wedge between the extremist leadership and what I call the “day soldiers,” [insurgents] those who sign up not because they are ideologues...
family photo n.— «The western leaders have used the D-Day ceremonies to underscore the unity of the western alliance in the face of Soviet attempts to drive a political wedge between the United States and Western Europe—and this was undoubtedly the...
wedge tornado n.— «The tornado that struck Greensburg is being described as at least a mile wide, perhaps a mile and a half wide. It was what is known as a “wedge” tornado, a tornado that looks wider than it does tall.» —“Large tornado levels...
pickle-stabber n.— «Pickle-stabber An extremely pointy high heel that is, in fact, so pointy you could stab a pickle with it, if you so desired. Despite the awesome name, these have been replaced by wedges and platform soles as the shoe of the...