Strictly speaking, the verb insure means to “pay a third party to protect against financial loss,” and ensure means “to make sure” or “make certain” that something occurs. For centuries, however, these words were used interchangeably. The hair-splitting distinctions between the two were the late creations of self-appointed grammarians in the mid-19th century. Insure, ensure, and assure all have roots in the Latin word sēcūrus, meaning “secure.”. This is part of a complete episode.
After an international team of scientists and staffers spent six months at a research station in Antarctica, their accents changed ever so slightly, according to an acoustic analysis by German researchers. The slang terms they shared include dingle...
Is the booty as in shake your booty related to a pirate’s booty? The booty that means “derriere” is an alteration of botty, which is itself an alteration of bottom. The booty that means “loot” or “plunder”...
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