Those who commute coast-to-coast are bicoastals. But what do you call someone who commutes along the same coast—between, say, Miami and New York? A woman who now travels regularly between Northern and Southern California to visit the grandchildren...
Remember when no one ever thought about adding the suffix “-gate” to a word to indicate a scandal? Now there’s Troopergate, Travelgate, Monicagate, Cameragate, Sandwichgate, and of course, the mother of all gates, Watergate. Grant...
An Atlanta listener seeks clarification about the difference between may and might. Might “may” be used to express a possibility, or is “might” a better choice? This is part of a complete episode.
In this week’s slang quiz, a member of the National Puzzlers’ League from Somerville, Massachusetts, tries to guess the meaning of bottle room and shred, the latter as used in the context of snowboarding, skateboarding, and surfing. This...
Do you cringe when you hear the words orientate and disorientate? A copy editor in Waldoboro, Maine does. She’d rather hear “orient” and “disorient.” The hosts weigh in on that extra syllable. This is part of a complete...
They were the last words Abraham Lincoln heard before John Wilkes Booth assassinated him: “Well, I guess I know enough to turn you inside-out, old gal—you sockdologizing old man-trap!” Booth knew that this line from the play Our American...
