wire-brush treatment
n.— «At 70, still sprints up Pentagon stairways. Senior civilians describe their boss as fierce and demanding; senior military officers describe sessions with him as “the wire-brush treatment.”» —“Rumsfeld’s Search for a Way To Fight a New Type of Foe” by Thom Shanker in Washington, D.C. New York Times Sept. 4, 2002. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
For rock climbers, skiers, and other outdoor enthusiasts, the word send has taken on a whole new meaning. You might cheer on a fellow snowboarder with Send it, bro! — and being sendy is a really great thing. Plus: a nostalgic trip to Willa...
Many of us struggled with the Old English poem “Beowulf” in high school. But what if you could actually hear “Beowulf” in the English of today? There’s a new translation by Maria Dahvana Headley that uses contemporary...