What is the plural of attorney general? Attorneys general or attorney generals? This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Attorney General Plural” Hello, you have A Way with Words. Hi there. My name is Jake Danan. I’m...
The expression hell’s half acre denotes a small patch of land or a place that’s otherwise undesirable. It has been around for a century and a half. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Hell’s Half Acre...
A man in Carlsbad, California, contends that the word ex for “a former partner” or “a former spouse” sounds too harsh. Is there a better term besides wasband? This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of...
In our Facebook group, listeners share ways to refer to someone who’s lived a half-century or more: 50-plus, member of the 600 Month Club, 29 plus shipping and handling, the 40th anniversary of my 30th birthday, and Jack Benny-plus. This is...
In the 17th century, the verb to bate and the likely related verb, to bat, were used in falconry to mean “to flap wildly.” By the 19th century, to bat was also part of the phrase to bat one’s eyelashes. This is part of a complete...
A listener in Shreveport, Louisiana, reports that after a fine meal, her father used to announce, “I have dined sufficiently, and I have been well surossified.” It’s a joking exaggeration of the word satisfied. In a 1980 article in...