The Dictionary of American Regional English offers these alternative words for doughnut: friedcake, twister, floater, sinker, finger, and chokerhole. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Alternatives for Doughnut” You’re listening to A...
To house something, as in to house a beer or to house a pizza, is slang for “consuming something really fast.” This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Slang “House”” Hi, you have A Way with Words. Hi, this is Whitney. I’m calling from...
What is sweet soup? It’s a Wisconsin specialty, made of cherry or raspberry juice mixed with prunes, raisins, and tapioca, and served either warm or cold. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Sweet Soup” Music. Grant, here’s a...
The old Brooklyn Dodger Roy Campanella really knew how to set the soup outside! A baseball fan recalls this overheard phrase from a game in the 60s between the Cardinals and the Dodgers, when Campy smacked one over the fence. Grant speculates this...
Do pregnant women enjoy pickles and ice cream? Linguists from the American Dialect Society have been discussing this recently. They found that the expression pickles and ice cream once referred simply to the conjoining of two unrelated things, sort...
What do you call the end piece of a loaf of bread? Names for that last slice include heel, bread butt, kissing crust, bunce, skirk, krunka, truna, tumpee, canust, the nose, and in Spanish, codo, which means “elbow.” This is part of a complete...
