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

Light-hearted conversation with callers from all over about new words, old sayings, slang, family ex

Episodes

Total: 775

Imagine telling someone how to get to your home, but without using the name of your street, or any o

If you take up texting and social media late in life, there’s a lot to learn! A twenty-something wan

Word Hoard - 30 May 2022

2022/5/30

Ever wonder what medieval England looked and sounded like? In Old English, the word hord meant “trea

Don’t move my cheese! It’s a phrase middle managers use to talk about adapting to change in the work

If you speak a second or third language, you may remember the first time you dreamed in that new ton

Do you refer to your dog or cat as “somebody”? As in: When you love somebody that much, you don’t mi

The word filibuster has a long and colorful history, going back to the days when pirates roamed the

Sure, there’s winter, spring, summer, and fall. But the seasons in between have even more poetic nam

Understanding the varieties of conversational styles can mean the difference between feeling you’re

Centuries ago, monks who took a vow of silence developed their own hand signs, with hundreds of gest

An anadrome is a word that forms a whole new word when you spell it backwards. For example, the word

Eels, orts, and Wordle! Sweden awarded its most prestigious literary award to a book about…eels. The

We take our voices for granted, but it’s truly miraculous that we communicate complex thoughts simpl

Some people work hard to lose their accent in order to fit in. Others may be homesick for the voices

For rock climbers, skiers, and other outdoor enthusiasts, the word send has taken on a whole new mea

Some college students are using the word loyalty as a synonym for monogamy. Are the meanings of thes

In Cockney rhyming slang, apples and pears is a synonym for “stairs,” and dustbin lids means kids. P

Need a slang term that can replace just about anynoun? Try chumpie. If you’re from Philadelphia, you

National Book Award winner Barry Lopez had wise advice for young writers. First, read widely and fol

What kind of book do people ask for most often in prison? Romance novels? No. The Bible? No. The mos