A Way with Words - language, linguistics, and callers from all over
Society & Culture
Surf’s up! When surfers describe the waves as going gangbusters, it’s a great time out on the water. But why that word? Plus, a thesaurus of flavors serves up delicious writing about the taste of foods and spices. And speaking of flavors, the history of vanilla is anything but bland. When the vanilla flavor was introduced to 16th-century Europeans, it was considered a rare delicacy. So why does the expression plain vanilla mean unexceptional today? Also, funny street names, hoorah’s nest, mooch, a quiz chock-full of assonance, traffic-light sundae, lawn jobs, sleigh riding vs. sledding, burn my clothes!, copperosity, sphenopalatine ganglioneuralgia, and more.
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.
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Cool Your Soup (Rebroadcast) - 10 April 2023
Cats and Dogs - 5 April 2023
Fair Dinkum - 3 April 2023
Put on the Dog (Rebroadcast) - 27 March 2023
Excuse the Hogs (Rebroadcast) - 20 March 2023
By a Landslide - 13 March 2023
All That and a Bag of Chips (Rebroadcast) - 6 March 2023
Big Dog - 27 February 2023
Familiar Strangers (Rebroadcast) - 20 February 2023
Hot Gossip - 13 February 2023
Word Hoard (Rebroadcast) - 6 February 2023
In the Ballpark - 30 January 2023
You Talk Like a Sausage (Rebroadcast) - 23 January 2023
Old College Try - 16 January 2023
Pushing the Envelope (Rebroadcast) - 9 January 2023
Primary Colors (Rebroadcast) - 2 January 2023
Deep-Fried Air (Rebroadcast) - 26 December 2022
Stub Your Toe - 19 December 2022
Big Bang - 12 December 2022
East Overshoe (Rebroadcast) - 5 December 2022
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