Home » Newsletter » Feast on Three New Episodes

Feast on Three New Episodes

Hey, look: there are three brand-new episodes to tell you about! Each includes a few rounds of devious word puzzles cooked up by our quiz guy John Chaneski, as well as:

Last weekend, “Secret Gibberish”:

  • piggyback
  • gibberish
  • the pronunciation of “pecan”
  • why English doesn’t have an official language academy
  • the expression “hold ’er, Newt!”
  • lots more!

Two weekends ago, “By Jingo!”:

  • the expression “doesn’t know fatmeat is greasy”
  • verbing nouns
  • more on creaky voice
  • symbols for cartoon profanity
  • grass widows
  • by jingo!
  • lots more!

Three weekends ago, “Like a Boss”:

  • the hip-hop roots of the catchphrase “like a boss.”
  • old-timey similes like “large as life and twice as natural.”
  • infra dig
  • witches’ knickers
  • lots more!

Clicky Clicky, Linky Linky

A little fun and enlightenment we’ve found on the Internet:

• The hilarious mispronunciation of words, via Jason Kottke.

• A peppy song about vowels. A sure mood-lifter!

• As we discussed in a past episode, it’s hard to understand some sports because the special lingo is so thick.

• The slow death of the signature, from The Atlantic.

Call to Action

Macmillan Dictionary is taking votes in a simple contest for the best website in their “Love English” awards. Won’t you give A Way with Words your vote?

Sincerely yours,

Martha and Grant

Leave a comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Further reading

Loaded for Bear (episode #1531)

One way to make your new business look trendy is to use two nouns separated by an ampersand, like Peach & Creature or Rainstorm & Egg or … just about any other two-word combination. A tongue-in-cheek website will generate names like...

Bronx Cheer (episode #1632)

What’s the best thing to say to someone who is grieving? Choosing the right words is far less important than just showing up. Also, a family from Russia shares their recipe for something they call hot tamales, that are very un-Mexican. And: if...

Recent posts