enunciator
n.— «I am all too familiar with the 34th Street-8th Avenue Station. Do I go to the downtown local track and hope that a C comes first? Or do I cast my lot with the A express option? It’s maddening. I wonder if they could have some “enunciator” device in the mezzanine below that would indicate whether a local or express was coming.» —“Answers About Mass Transit, Part 3″ New York Times: City Room June 12, 2008. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
You must log in to post a comment.
Mrs. Astor’s Horse (episode #1530) 07/29/2019: "What has a head like a cat, feet like a cat, a tail like a cat, but isn't a cat?" Answer: a kitten! A 1948... [more]
At First Blush (episode #1529) 07/15/2019: Book recommendations and the art of apology. Martha and Grant share some good reads, including an opinionated romp through English grammar, a Spanish-language adventure novel,... [more]
Gift Horse (episode #1528) 07/01/2019: The edge of the Grand Canyon. A remote mountaintop. A medieval cathedral. Some places are so mystical you feel like you're close to another dimension... [more]
Had the Radish (episode #1527) 06/21/2019: Your first name is very personal, but what if you don't like it? For some people, changing their name works out great but for others... [more]
Abso-Bloomin-Lutely (episode #1526) 06/03/2019: The autocomplete function on your phone comes in handy, of course. But is it changing the way we write and how linguists study language? Also,... [more]
This is clearly a misprint of “annunciator”. Originally, these were simple electromechanical devices which would indicate that an event had occurred and would remain indicating until reset. The word was certainly being used to refer to the large, electromechanical boards indicating train details at stations when I lived in Philadelphia in the eighties.