If you’re “down to the lick log,” you’re close to the end of negotiations, or nearing some kind of decision. This expression is associated with cattle ranching, a salt lick being a place where the herd congregates. The 19th...
In this downbeat economy, some advertisers are reaching for upbeat language. Take the new Quaker Oats catchphrase, “Go humans go,” or Coca-Cola’s current slogan, “Open happiness.” Martha and Grant discuss whether...
If you’re doing a hasty, haphazard job, you’re said to do it with “a lick and a promise.” What’s the origin of that expression? This is part of a complete episode.
lick n.— «Many folks in the rest of the country wonder why anyone would want to live in such a flood-prone place. Luke becomes visibly tense at the subject and responds, “It’s a way of life,” referring to living on the water...
green broke adj.— «The afflicted victim has the urge to buy a horse and the only way to lick the dreaded malady is to attend a horse sale.…Since the subject had been brought up I asked in a quieter voice, “Is he broke?”...
lip-licker’s dermatitis n.— «When you lick your lips, the temporary moisture evaporates, leaving the lips further dehydrated. Too much moisture around the lips can sometimes lead to what’s commonly called lip-licker’s dermatitis—a rash...