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A Blue Million

Ian in Clyde, North Carolina, is puzzled when a colleague uses the term blue million, meaning “a large amount.” Along with words like zillion and gazillion, this expression functions as an indefinite hyperbolic numeral. Sometimes the...

Get the Goody Out

Amelia in Arlington, Virginia, was surprised to hear her wife, who is from Iowa, use the phrase getting the goody out to describe someone sporting a well-worn pair of sweatpants, indicating that they were continuing to get the most out of that...

track

track  n.— «The Marines had no problem taking the enemy head on, but the much-talked about intelligence regarding booby-trapped buildings kept the conversation going inside the “tracks,” or amphibious assault vehicles...

dollar van

dollar van  n.— «Officials have arranged for licensed commuter vans, also known as dollar vans, to operate limited service along the affected routes if a strike occurs.» —“City Sets Talks After Strike Is Approved at 2 Private Bus...

Blunkett

Blunkett  n.— «My best friend has been with her boyfriend for over two years and when she lightly dropped a hint of something more permanent in the New Year, he freaked. She is now back on the singles market. After all that...