Johanna in Munising, Michigan, has a funny story about a childhood misunderstanding. Guitarists sometimes refer to their instrument as an ax. But at least as early as the 1940s, the slang term ax referred to other instruments, including trombones...
Elaine from Boulder, Colorado, wonders: What’s the origin of the slang term to clock someone, meaning to hit them? This is part of a complete episode.
Brannon, a high-schooler in Dallas, Texas, wonders about the meaning of slang term on fleek, meaning perfect or just right. Peaches Monroee popularized this expression in a Vine where she was proud of having eyebrows “on fleek.” She...
Politicians have to repeat themselves so often that they naturally develop a repertoire of stock phrases to fall back on. But is there any special meaning to subtler locutions, such as beginning a sentence with the words “Now, look…”...
The dated term “jingoism” denotes a kind of belligerent nationalism but the word’s roots lie in an old English drinking-house song that was popular during wartime. Speaking of fightin’ words, the expression “out the side of...
The slang term birdie refers to drinking from a bottle without touching it with your lips. You might ask for a sip, for example, by promising, “Don’t worry, I’ll birdie it.” This sanitary sipping method is also called...