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

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Get Your Nickels Together for a Jitney Supper - 7 June 2010 Jun 07, 2010

Show notes

Anagrams, rebuses, cryptograms — Martha and Grant swap stories about the games that first made them realize that playing with words and letters can be fun. Also this week, what’s a jitney supper and where do you eat graveyard stew? The hosts explain the origin of the term hang fire and why Alaskans sound like they’re from the Midwest, and take on a debate about whether an egregious falsehood is a bald-faced lie or a bold-faced lie.

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.

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Bless Your Heart - 31 May 2010 May 31, 2010

Show notes

This week, it’s backhanded phrases, those snarky remarks that come sugar-coated in politeness, like “How nice for you,” “Oh, interesting!,” and the mother of all thinly veiled criticism, “Bless her heart.” Also this week, free reign vs. free rein, the origin of the one-finger salute, and what it means if a Frenchman has “big ankles.” And Jeopardy! champion Ken Jennings stops by to try his hand at a slang quiz.

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Hit the Pickle Button - 10 May 2010 May 10, 2010

Show notes

Who was that masked man? Was it the Barefoot Bandit, the Mummy Bandit, or perhaps the Botox Bandit? Or maybe it was the Bad-Breath Bandit? The hosts discuss the wacky names that law enforcement officers give to suspects. Also, what’s a pickle button? Why do we say “be there or be square”? And what does the word seditty mean in the African-American community?

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X, Y, and Zed (Rebroadcast) - 26 April 2010 Apr 26, 2010

Show notes

Some teachers are using a controversial tactic to get young students reading: They let their pupils choose which books to read for class. Does it work? Also, should that line at the grocery store checkout read 15 items or less or fewer? And is the expression these ones grammatically incorrect?

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Pardon Our French - 19 April 2010 Apr 19, 2010

Show notes

South African English is a rich mix of Afrikaans, English, and indigenous languages such as Zulu and Xhosa. Martha and Grant discuss some favorite terms from that part of the world, including lekker, diski, and ubuntu. Also, where’d we get the term hurt locker and why do we say “pardon my French” after cursing? What’s the difference between supposedly and supposably? And is having a vast vocabulary filled with obscure words really all that important?

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Awkward Turtle - 5 April 2010 Apr 05, 2010

Show notes

Do you say something happened on accident or by accident? Is text-messaging destroying our kids’ writing ability? Where do horseradish, zarf, and ignoramus come from?

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Gyros and Sheath Cakes (Rebroadcast) - 29 March 2010 Mar 29, 2010

Show notes

What’s the right way to pronounce gyros? Have you ever heard of feeling poozley? Called something great a blinger? Use the expression one-off to mean a “one-time thing”?

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Jan Freeman, Write it Right - 4 March 2010 Mar 04, 2010

Show notes

One hundred years ago, American journalist and satirist Ambrose Bierce published a curmudgeonly book of writing advice called Write It Right: A Little Blacklist of Literary Faults.

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Jack Lynch, Author of The Lexicographer's Dilemma - 22 Jan. 2010 Jan 22, 2010

Show notes

You know that grammatical 'rule' about not ending a sentence with a preposition? Well, who ever decided finishing off a sentence like that is a bad thing? (Personally, we think it's one of the silliest things anyone ever came up with.)

In his new book, The Lexicographer's Dilemma The Evolution of 'Proper' English, from Shakespeare to South Park, literary historian Jack Lynch offers a lively narrative about the evolution of such rules, starting in the 17th century, when grammar books were more like self-help guides for the upwardly mobile. He introduces us to the flesh-and-blood (and almost always quirky) grammarians and dictionary editors who created and popularized traditional rules that people still argue about today.

Recently Lynch talked with Martha about why and how some of those rules came to be.

http://www.amazon.com/Lexicographers-Dilemma-Evolution-English-Shakespeare/dp/0802717004/ref=pd_rhf_shvl_1

Incidentally, Lynch, an associate professor of English at Rutgers University, has published his own helpful guide to grammar and usage online.

http://andromeda.rutgers.edu/~jlynch/Writing/

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Ken Jennings: Not-So-Trivial Pursuits (Minicast) - Jan. 12, 2010 Jan 12, 2010

Show notes

Grant interviews Jeopardy! champion Ken Jennings about the grueling nature of TV quiz shows, the fine art of writing trivia questions, the special challenges of competing in European quiz contests, and how it feels to answer incorrectly.

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