Complaining about young people’s slang is nothing new. Browsing Google Books, Grant stumbled upon an amusing example from the 19th century called “The Age of Slang.” Oh, my stars and garters! This is part of a complete episode...
There should be a word for the kind of friend you can go without seeing for years, then reconnect with as though no time has gone by. Martha calls those her “Anyway” friends, because they just pick right up with...
The disgruntled consumer who tweeted “My ‘prize’ in my Cracker Jack box…whoever does quality control needs to get fired” accidentally did something miraculous. This message includes all 26 letters of the alphabet...
Shinrin-yoku, the Japanese term for walking around in the woods that literally means “a forest bath” is a beautiful descriptor for what a hike should be—an opportunity to stroll through nature and wash off the stress of everyday life...
If you’re talking to group of people of mixed genders, it’s fine to address them as “You guys.” After all, English lacks a distinctive second-person plural. Still, if the usage offends someone, it’s best to address them...
Spleeny means hypersensitive, squeamish, or hypochondriacal, and it’s chiefly associated with New England. Jean, now in northern Michigan, grew up in Maine hearing it when she flinched from things like splinters, then discovered elsewhere that the...