A Way with Words - language, linguistics, and callers from all over

Latest Episodes:

Steamed Bun - 20 March 2017 Mar 20, 2017

Show notes

This week: Do you ever find yourself less-than-specific about your age? Listeners share some of their favorite phrases for fudging that number, like: “Oh, I’m 29, plus shipping and handling.” Also in this episode: • Since ancient times, people have hidden messages in clever ways. Nowadays, coded messages are sometimes concealed in pixels. • Uber-silly German jokes: Did you hear the one about the two skyscrapers knitting in the basement? It’s silly, all right. • The origin of hello, the creative class, all wool and a yard wide, get some kip, a handful of minutes, and jeep.

Read full show notes, hear hundreds of free episodes, send your thoughts and questions, and learn more on the A Way with Words website: https://waywordradio.org/contact. Be a part of the show: call 1 (877) 929-9673 toll-free in the United States and Canada; worldwide, call or text/SMS +1 (619) 800-4443. Email words@waywordradio.org. Twitter @wayword. Copyright Wayword, Inc., a 501(c)(3) corporation.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Gangbusters (Rebroadcast) - 13 March 2017 Mar 13, 2017

Show notes

Sensuous words and terms of endearment. Think of a beautiful word. Now, is it simply the word’s sound that makes it beautiful? Or does its appeal also depend on meaning? Also, pet names for lovers around the world: You might call your beloved “honey,” or “babe,” or “boo.” But in Swedish, your loved one is a “sweet nose,” and in Persian, you can just say you hope a mouse eats them. Finally, in certain parts of the U.S., going out to see a stripper may not mean what you think it means. Plus, clutch, dank, “girled up,” “gorilla warfare,” “dead ringer,” “spitten image,” butter beans vs. lima beans, and “the whole shebang.”

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

XYZ PDQ (Rebroadcast) - 6 March 2017 Mar 06, 2017

Show notes

How often do you hear the words campaign and political in the same breath? Oddly enough, 19th-century grammarians railed against using campaign to mean “an electoral contest.” Martha and Grant discuss why. And, lost in translation: a daughter accidentally insults her Spanish-speaking mother with the English phrase “You can’t teach an old dog new tricks.” Finally, just how many are a couple? Does a couple always mean just two? Or does “Hand me a couple of napkins” ever really mean “Give me a few”?

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hang a Ralph (Rebroadcast) - 27 February 2017 Feb 27, 2017

Show notes

The names of professional sports teams often have surprising histories — like the baseball team name inspired by, of all things, trolley-car accidents. Plus, some questions to debate at your next barbecue: Is a hot dog a sandwich if it’s in a bun? And when exactly does dusk or dawn begin? Dictionary editors wrestle with such questions all the time, and it turns out that writing a definition is a lot harder than you think. Finally, a new word for your John Hancock: When you use your finger to sign an iPad, what do you call that electronic scribble? Plus, “hang a Roscoe,” “Peck’s Bad Boy,” “coming down the pike,” sozzling, stroppy, and umbers.

Hear hundreds of free episodes and learn more on the A Way with Words website: ⁠https://waywordradio.org⁠. Be a part of the show: call or text ⁠1 (877) 929-9673⁠ toll-free in the United States and Canada; elsewhere in the world, call or text ⁠+1 619 800 4443⁠. Send voice notes or messages via ⁠WhatsApp 16198004443.⁠ Email ⁠words@waywordradio.org⁠. Copyright Wayword, Inc., a 501(c)(3) corporation.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Charismatic Megafauna - 20 February 2017 Feb 20, 2017

Show notes

Choosing language that helps resolve interpersonal conflict. Sometimes a question is really just a veiled form of criticism and understanding the difference between “ask culture” and “guess culture” can help you know how to respond. • What words should you use with a co-worker who’s continually apologizing for being late — but never changes her behavior? Finally, charismatic megafauna may look cuddly, but they’re best appreciated from a distance. Plus, in like Flynn, gradoo, champing, pronouncing the word the, pilot episodes, and bless your heart.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Knuckle Down - 13 February 2017 Feb 13, 2017

Show notes

A wingnut is a handy, stabilizing piece of hardware. So why is it a pejorative term for those of a certain political persuasion? Also, is there something wrong with the phrase committed suicide? Some say that the word commit is a painful reminder that, legally, suicide was once considered a criminal act. They’ve proposed a different term. Finally, a word game inspired by that alliteratively athletic season, March Madness. Plus, rabble rouser vs. rebel rouser, BOLO, feeling punk, free rein, sneaky pete, and a cheesy pun.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Lie Like A Rug - 5 February 2017 Feb 06, 2017

Show notes

The words we choose can change attitudes — and change lives. A swing-dance instructor has switched to gender-neutral language when teaching couples. He says that using words like “leader” and “follower” actually works better than using gendered terms. But not everyone agrees. Plus, a pithy observation about how stray comments can seem meaningless at the time, but can lodge in other people like seeds and start growing. Plus, slang you might hear in Albuquerque, sufficiently suffonsified, make ends meet, cut a chogi, and minders, finders, and grinders.

Hear hundreds of free episodes and learn more on the A Way with Words website: https://waywordradio.org. Be a part of the show: call or text 1 (877) 929-9673 toll-free in the United States and Canada; elsewhere in the world, call or text +1 619 800 4443. Send voice notes or messages via WhatsApp 16198004443. Email words@waywordradio.org. Copyright Wayword, Inc., a 501(c)(3) corporation.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Pig Latin - 29 January 2017 Jan 30, 2017

Show notes

Grant and Martha discuss the L-word — or two L-words, actually: liberal and libertarian. They reflect different political philosophies, so why do they look so similar? Also, is the term expat racist? A journalist argues that the word expat carries a value judgment, suggesting that Westerners who move to another country are admirable and adventurous, while the term immigrant implies that someone moved out of necessity or may even be a burden to their adopted country. Finally, what do guys call a baby shower thrown for the father-to-be? A dad-chelor party? Plus, glottalization, film at 11, grab a root and growl, and pig Latin.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

You Bet Your Boots (Rebroadcast) - 23 January 2016 Jan 23, 2017

Show notes

You may have heard the advice that to build your vocabulary you should read, read, and then read some more – and make sure to include a wide variety of publications. But what if you just don’t have that kind of time? Martha and Grant show how to learn new words by making the most of the time you do have. Also, when new words are added to a dictionary, do others get removed to make room? Plus, words of encouragement, words of exasperation, and a polite Japanese way to say goodbye when a co-worker leaves at the end of the day. Also, “you bet your boots,” “the worm has turned,” “raise hell and put a chunk under it,” “bread and butter,” “on tomorrow,” a love letter to libraries and an apology to marmots.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Pink Slip (Rebroadcast) - 16 January 2017 Jan 16, 2017

Show notes

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…”? Also, a peculiar twist in Southern speech may leave outsiders scratching their heads: In parts of the South “I wouldn’t care to” actually means “I would indeed like to.” Finally, how the word nerd went from a dismissive term to a badge of honor. Also, “dog in the manger,” “crumb crushers,” hairy panic, “pink slips,” “make a branch,” and “horning hour.”

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Our TOPPODCAST Picks

Follow Us

Stay Connected

A Way with Words – language, linguistics, and callers from all over

Related Podcasts

Links

Stay Connected