A listener from Texas heard an NPR report from Asia in which an interpreter translated a speaker’s words into English as “a whole new ball game.” He wants to know if that’s a literal translation from an Asian language, and if...
Grant shares a strange word from the fringes of English: mofussil. This is part of a complete episode.
This week’s Slang This! contestant is asked to guess the meanings of the slang terms gauge and head-up. This is part of a complete episode.
A California caller is curious about the words Shia and Shiite. Is there difference between them or are they interchangeable? This is part of a complete episode.
A Michigan woman working a study-abroad program at a large university is bemused by the many applicants who write that they want to study overseas so they can be “submerged in the culture.” She thinks there’s a difference between...
Are more and more people talking about standing behind a podium? A San Diegan says the traditional rule has been that one stands behind a lectern and stands on a podium. Has this traditional rule changed? This is part of a complete episode.