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Thee, Thou, You, and Ye

Mark in Indianapolis, Indiana, wonders about the history of the second person singular and plural in English. At one time, thee and thou were singular, and you and ye were plural. By the early 17th century, thou and thee as familiar terms of address...

Whoop it Up

Amanda in Indianapolis, Indiana, wonders about her mother’s exhortation whoop it up!, meaning “Get going!” It’s part of a long tradition of making noise to urge someone to hurry. This is part of a complete episode.

How Correct, Indiana, Was Named

A small southeast Indiana town was supposed to be named Comet, after the Great Comet of 1881. But a misunderstanding between the local postmaster and U.S. Post Office officials resulted in the town incorrectly being called Correct. This is part of a...

Yay vs. Yea

Jill in Indianapolis, Indiana, wonders how to spell the one-syllable cheer that starts with Y. Is it yay or yea? Since the 1930s, yay has been used as a little celebratory word. The word yea is much older and used in formal texts to mean...

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