skuke n.— «In this little town on the south coast, people like me — summer folk — are known as skukes. I’ve never met anyone who knows the real derivation of the term, but it’s not a compliment. Skukes are annoying because...
Greetings from radioland! It's another newsletter from "A Way with Words." This week was a brand-new episode, featuring a word quiz with *both* of our quiz guys, plus discussions of overuse of exclamation marks, bogarting, rattling...
alli-oops n.— «s a result of a nationwide campaign to sell GSK’s new weight-loss drug Alli, (AKA Orlistat, AKA Xenical), it quickly became the fastest selling over-the-counter weight-loss medication. […] But don’t let the scare...
synthetic short n.— «At a time when traders would normally have shorted the stock as part of the trade, they’re instead bypassing the rising cost of doing so by assembling what are called “synthetic shorts.” In case you’re not familiar...
REO n.— «R.E.O. is industry lingo for “Real Estate Owned,” the term that bankers assign to homes they have taken in a foreclosure. Reomac is the industry group that serves the mortgage default trade, specializing in selling the busted-up...
dag n.—Gloss: A euphemized or modified form of “damn.” «“He was selling it right here at the bar? Dag. I didn’t know it was that kind of place.” According to court documents, Mr. Younge, 50, of the Bronx, sold illegal drugs on...