Barbara in Jacksonville, Florida, recalls her grandmother saying she liked her coffee strong enough to tote double and kick up behind. The expression tote double refers to the action of a horse carrying two people. If a horse is able to kick up behind while it’s carrying two people, it’s very strong indeed. This is part of a complete episode.
The so-called “lifestyle influencer accent” you hear in videos on TikTok and YouTube, where someone speaks with rising tones at the end of sentences and phrases, suggesting that they’re about to say something important, is a form of what linguists...
Meg in Cape Cod, Massachusetts, gets why the state highway department encourages drivers to use their blinkers when changing lanes, but placing a digital sign at the Sagamore Bridge that reads Use Ya Blinkah is, well, a lexical bridge too far. Meg’s...
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