Decisions by dictionary editors, wacky wordplay, and Walt Whitman’s soaring verse. How do lexicographers decide which historical figures deserve a mention or perhaps even an illustration in the dictionary? The answer changes with the times. •...
A writer at an ad agency in Rochester, New York, has a dispute with his chief copy writer: If you’re taking off Thursday and Friday, is your last day of work that week a Wednesday Friday? Or is it a Friday Wednesday? This is part of a complete...
Hola, che! In this week’s episode, it’s a game about food names! (“What would you serve to a plumber?” “Leeks.”) We also discuss how to correct a new sweetheart’s grammar, “infracaninophile,”...
Ahoy! In this week’s brand-spankin’-new episode: Great gifts for language lovers, nerds vs. geeks, “tow the line” vs. “toe the line,” the slang term “poutrage,” and the crust in the corners of your...
crabby adj.— «Last year NASCAR was trying to reduce the amount of lateral track alignment offset from the front to the rear wheels that teams were running in their COT set-ups, inducing what was known as “crabby cars.” The cars were...
rocket docket n.— «In a court system in which clerks get behind on scheduling trial dates by an additional 220 cases each and every day, Dallas” “proof or plea” docket is a big help, disposing of about 200 cases during...