The word pretty, used to modify an adjective, as in pretty good or pretty bad, has strayed far from its etymological roots, which originally had to do with being “cunning” or “crafty.” This is part of a complete episode.
The editors of the Oxford English Dictionary recently added several Irish English terms. One of them is segotia, which means “friend...
Lily in Iowa City, Iowa, says she and her roommate differ about how to pronounce the word hammock. Is it HAM-mock or HAM-mick? This is part...
Chris in Northampton, Massachusetts, and his mother are debating whether you can refer to your dog as somebody? Is it reasonable to say...
Quiz Guy John Chaneski’s puzzle is about animal anatomy, specifically nouns and adjectives formed by combining the name of an animal...
Was English spelling standardized before the advent of the printing press? No, but there were some significant periods in history where...
The Irish English word bockety describes someone who has difficulty walking, or something that’s fallen into a state of disrepair, as...
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