The Greek word for the cuckoo bird, kokkux, is related to our word coccyx, the tailbone, because the bone looks like the bill of a cuckoo. This is part of a complete episode.
“These days, a chicken leg is a rare dish” might sound like an odd thing to observe, but during World War II, it was among dozens of phonetically balanced sentences devised by researchers for testing cockpit transmissions and headphones...
That fatty bump at the end of a turkey or a chicken, known as the pope’s nose, is also called the south end of a northbound chicken. This is part of a complete episode.
Hi, ho! In this week’s episode, we discuss odd words, how children learn to talk, “in my wheelhouse,” “high as Cooter Brown,” and “good leather.” Greg Pliska metagrobolizes us with a quiz based on the 2011...
nerd bird n.— «The “nerd bird” lives on, after all. A week after American Airlines said it would cease the San Jose-Austin daily service that bore that nickname, Alaska Airlines said Monday it will inaugurate daily service...
Grant notes that birds sometimes get re-christened with a different name. Often a bird’s commemorative name—one that honors a bird’s discoverer—will be replaced years later. Case in point: Rivoli’s hummingbird is now known as the...