Books were rare treasures in the Middle Ages, painstakingly copied out by hand. So how to protect them from theft? Scribes sometimes added a curse to the first page of those books that was supposed to keep thieves away — and some were as vicious as...
What’s the best way for someone busy to learn lots of new words quickly for a test like the GRE? Looking up their origins can help. Or, record yourself reading the words and definitions and play them back while you’re doing other chores. • Book...
This week: Do you ever find yourself less-than-specific about your age? Listeners share some of their favorite phrases for fudging that number, like: “Oh, I’m 29, plus shipping and handling.” Also in this episode: • Since ancient times, people have...
A listener in our Facebook group reports that sometimes he says he’s not old — he’s just been young for a really long time. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Not Old, Just Young for a Long Time” A couple more comments from our...
A Carmel, Indiana, teacher is puzzled to hear younger colleagues pronounce the words kitten and mitten as KIH-un and MIH-un, with a noticeable break between the syllables. Linguist David Eddington of Brigham Young University reports that this...
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. Transcript of “Young...