Whoever wrote “The Book of Love” neglected to include the handy emoticon <3, which looks like a heart if you turn your head sideways. Grant and Martha talk about how that bit of affectionate shorthand can function as a verb, and about the antiquated words for “kiss,” osculate and exosculate. This episode first aired February 13, 2010.
Kiss Emoticon
Whoever wrote “The Book of Love” neglected to include the handy emoticon <3, which looks like a heart if you turn your head sideways. Grant and Martha talk about how that bit of affectionate shorthand can function as a verb, and about the antiquated words for “kiss,” osculate and exosculate.
Waste Not, Want Not
A Houston woman says her family makes fun of her for saying “waste not, want not.” Does this proverb make literal sense?
Talking in Text
BTDubs, a San Diego caller notices that more of her co-workers are talking in text, saying things like “BRB” instead of “Be right back” or “JK” instead of “Just kidding!” Is it a passing fad, or a new way of speaking?
One Last Kiss
Mwah, mwah, mwah, mwah, mwah, mwah… MmmmmWAH! Martha shares the German verb that means to plant one last kiss in a series of them.
Fill-in-the-Blank Limerick Puzzle
Quiz Guy John Chaneski has a fill-in-the-blank limerick puzzle, including:
There was once a coed named Clapper
In psychology class quite a napper.
But her Freudian dreams
Were so classic it seems
That now she’s a __________________.
Self-Referential Humor
“I feel more like I do now than I did a while ago.” The hosts discuss that and other examples of self-referential humor, like “Before I begin speaking, I’d like to say something.”
Male Mistress
A woman having an affair with a married man is a mistress. So what’s the word for an unmarried man who’s having an affair with a married woman? Consort? Leman?
Literary Kisses
Martha shares the famous passage from the poem by Catullus that begins, “Give me a thousand kisses…“ Grant reads an excerpt from the 1883 volume, The Love Poems of Louis Barnaval by Charles de Kay.
Genealogy Chart
What’s the difference between a second cousin and a cousin once removed? Here’s a helpful chart from Genealogy.com.
Volcano Riddle
What did the boy volcano say to the girl volcano?
Knock On Wood
A caller from Ocracoke Island, North Carolina, wonders about the origin of “knock on wood.” The hosts do, too. More about the unusual language of Ocracoke here.
Scissorbill
What’s a scissorbill? A bird? A hog? And how did its name get transferred to refer to anyone who’s lazy or ineffectual?
Proper Plurals
A caller from San Diego, California, wonders about the proper way to pluralize analysis: is analysises ever correct?
This episode is hosted by Martha Barnette and Grant Barrett, and produced by Stefanie Levine.
Photo by Kate Ter Haar. Used under a Creative Commons license.
Books Mentioned in the Episode
| The Love Poems of Louis Barnaval Edited by Charles Dekay |
| The Kiss and its History by Christopher Nyrop |
