Michelle, who works for the United States Department of Defense in San Diego, California, thinks of the word alibi as an excuse, but her coworkers have an additional meaning for it. Toward the end of a meeting, her supervisor will ask if anyone has...
Is a hot dog a sandwich if it’s in a bun? Why or why not? Is a burrito a sandwich? (A Massachusetts judge actually ruled on that question in 2006.) What about a veggie wrap? These kinds of questions about the limits and core meanings of...
Anthony in Salt Lake City remembers using frajo for a cigarette in high school in Pueblo, Colorado, where it worked as classroom code alongside Spanglish terms like fedia for money. The word turns up in studies of Mexican-American youth slang from...
Israeli bandage n.— «Cpl. Fevens explained how Cpl. Robertson should cut his pants off to look for arterial bleeding that could kill him in minutes. After they determined there was none, Cpl. Robertson used something soldiers call Israeli...
Killadelphia n.— «He said calling Philadelphia “Killadelphia” is a bum wrap because the number of homicides is lower than in past years.» —“Outgoing Police Commissioner Says ‘Killadelphia’ Is Bum Wrap” WCAU...
bandonym n.— «More singer-songwriters have noticed that you don’t need a “bandonym” (in critic Carl Wilson’s useful coinage) to wrap yourself in myth.» —“The Writ Stuff” by Franklin...
