Lisa in Wilmington, North Carolina, remembers her grandmother using the expression who struck John to mean “confusion,” “foolishness,” or “bad behavior.” A common variant is “who shot John.” No one’s sure who John was, but this phrase is predated by...
Alicia from Wilmington, North Carolina, says she grew using the word allow to mean “say” or “declare.” Sometimes rendered simply as ’low, this expression has been used since at least the 18th century. Another form meaning “to admit” is allow as how...
Calisa in Wilmington, North Carolina, wonders about the origin of the term fair to middling, meaning “about average.” It derives from an old system of classifying agricultural products. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “”Fair to...
snag golf n.— «Future duffers are being taught through physical education classes at the schools using Velcro balls and targets in what is called snag golf.» —“Golfers in training” by Ginny Peterson Star-News (Wilmington, North Carolina) Apr. 15...
friendraiser n.— «That event wasn’t a fundraiser—its tickets of $60 per person or $90 per couple, she says, went entirely to cover costs—but was what arts development professionals have taken to calling a “friendraiser.” It’s meant to increase the...
wingery n.— «Our destination: the brand new WOW Cafe and Wingery next to Mayfaire Cinemas. The “WOW” we learned stands for “World of Wings.”…We discovered that WOW’s menus had little WOWs next to select items which “denote a WOW favorite”—and, of...
