How did the first person to say a dirty word know it was a dirty word? Geoffrey Hughes’ Encyclopedia of Swearing is a great source on this. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “The First Dirty Word” Hello, you have A...
You’re in a business meeting. Is it bad manners to take out your phone to send or read a text? A new study suggests that how you feel about mid-meeting texting differs depending on your age and sex. Grant and Martha offer book recommendations...
This week’s quiz from John Chaneski is a fill-in-the-blank game. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Combining Words Puzzle” You’re listening to A Way with Words, the show about language and how we use it...
Our Quiz Guy John Chaneski sorts out the hosts with a puzzle about book categories on Amazon.com. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Book Categories Puzzle” You’re listening to A Way with Words, the show about...
Elizabeth in Billings, Montana, grew up in Ireland using bollix or bollocks to mean making a mess of things, as in “I’ve really bollocksed this up.” The word is related to balls and originally referred to testicles, which helps explain why a...
A listener in San Antonio is trying to decide how to address a mixed-gender graduating class from her nonprofit’s fellowship program. Alumnae is the plural for an all-female group of former students, while alumni works for an all-male group or a co...