Loaded For Bear (Rebroadcast) - 18 March 2024
A Way with Words
by Hosted by Martha Barnette and Grant Barrett. Produced by Stefanie Levine.
1w ago
One way to make your new business look trendy is to use two nouns separated by an ampersand, like Peach & Creature or Rainstorm & Egg or … just about any other two-word combination. A tongue-in-cheek website will generate names like that for you. And: In the traditions of several African countries, names for babies are often inspired by conditions at the time of their birth, like a period of grief or wedding festivities, or the baby’s position when leaving the womb. In Zambia, for example, some people go by the name Bornface, because they were born face up. Also, slang from a rock-clim ..read more
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Bronx Cheer - 11 March 2024
A Way with Words
by Hosted by Martha Barnette and Grant Barrett. Produced by Stefanie Levine.
2w ago
What’s the best thing to say to someone who is grieving? Choosing the right words is far less important than just showing up. Also, a family from Russia shares their recipe for something they call hot tamales, that are very un-Mexican. And: if someone’s trying to be philosophical about a situation, they might say sometimes you eat the bear, sometimes the bear eats you. Plus, horsengoggling, a fragrant 16th-century simile, might as well, can’t dance, a puzzle about cryptic crosswords, Trevlac, Québécois French, Pearl at the picnic, avoir l’air d’une vache qui regarde passer un train, a messy pa ..read more
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Mrs. Astor's Horse (Rebroadcast) - 4 March 2024
A Way with Words
by Hosted by Martha Barnette and Grant Barrett. Produced by Stefanie Levine.
3w ago
“What has a head like a cat, feet like a cat, a tail like a cat, but isn’t a cat?” Answer: a kitten! A 1948 children’s joke book has lots of these to share with kids. Plus: an easy explanation for the difference between immigrate with an i, and emigrate with an e. And: The ancient Greeks revered storks for the way they cared for each other. They even had a legal requirement called the Stork Law, which mandated that Greek adults look after their elderly parents. Much later, the same idea inspired a rare English word that means “reciprocal love between children and parents.” All that, plus a bra ..read more
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At First Blush (Rebroadcast) - 19 February 2024
A Way with Words
by Hosted by Martha Barnette and Grant Barrett. Produced by Stefanie Levine.
3w ago
Book recommendations and the art of apology. Martha and Grant share some good reads, including an opinionated romp through English grammar, a Spanish-language adventure novel, an account of 19th-century dictionary wars, and a gorgeously illustrated book of letters to young readers. Plus, what’s the best language for conveying a heartfelt apology? Ideally, an apology won’t be the end of a conversation. Rather, it will be the beginning of one. Plus, a brain-busting word quiz, snow job, clean as a whistle, high muckety-muck, tip us your daddle, and a wet bird never flies at night, and lots more ..read more
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Ghost Runner - 26 February 2024
A Way with Words
by Hosted by Martha Barnette and Grant Barrett. Produced by Stefanie Levine.
1M ago
In Japan, if you want to order a corndog, you ask for an Amerikan doggu (アメリカンドッグ). These types of coinages are called wasei-eigo , or “Japanese-made English,” and there are lots of them. Plus, there’s an atmospheric optical phenomenon that looks somewhat like the aurora borealis, but has a much friendlier name. Scientists refer to these ribbons of color as … Steve. And: need a synonym for the word “conspicuous”? There’s always kenspeckle . Also, nitnoy , faire la grasse matinée , sunday-to-meeting , sana, sana, colita de rana, a codebreaker who solves a years-long mystery, a brain teaser abou ..read more
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At First Blush (Rebroadcast) - 19 February 2024
A Way with Words
by Hosted by Martha Barnette and Grant Barrett. Produced by Stefanie Levine.
1M ago
Book recommendations and the art of apology. Martha and Grant share some good reads, including an opinionated romp through English grammar, a Spanish-language adventure novel, an account of 19th-century dictionary wars, and a gorgeously illustrated book of letters to young readers. Plus, what's the best language for conveying a heartfelt apology? Ideally, an apology won't be the end of a conversation. Rather, it will be the beginning of one. Plus, a brain-busting word quiz, snow job, clean as a whistle, high muckety-muck, tip us your daddle, and a wet bird never flies at night. Read full show ..read more
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Sweet Spot - 12 February 2024
A Way with Words
by Hosted by Martha Barnette and Grant Barrett. Produced by Stefanie Levine.
1M ago
If you’re in a book club, how do you decide what books to read? There are lots of different ways, depending on your group’s goals. And is it ever wise to correct someone who mispronounces a word? Sometimes you have to decide if it’s better to be right–or simply get along. Plus, some research suggests that when presented with photos from nature, humans naturally focus on animals instead of plants. Botanists even have a term for this tendency: plant blindness. Also, tight as a drum, a funny quiz about slightly altered Stephen King titles, sweet spot, lemniscate, kehrätä, mais garde donc, fourth ..read more
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Sweet Spot - 12 February 2024
A Way with Words
by Hosted by Martha Barnette and Grant Barrett. Produced by Stefanie Levine.
1M ago
If you're in a book club, how do you decide what books to read? There are lots of different ways, depending on your group's goals. And is it ever wise to correct someone who mispronounces a word? Sometimes you have to decide if it's better to be right--or simply get along. Plus, some research suggests that when presented with photos from nature, humans naturally focus on animals instead of plants. Botanists even have a term for this tendency: plant blindness. Also, tight as a drum, a funny quiz about slightly altered Stephen King titles, sweet spot, lemniscate, kehrätä, mais garde donc, fourth ..read more
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Gift Horse (Rebroadcast) - 5 February 2024
A Way with Words
by Hosted by Martha Barnette and Grant Barrett. Produced by Stefanie Levine.
1M ago
The edge of the Grand Canyon. A remote mountaintop. A medieval cathedral. Some places are so mystical you feel like you’re close to another dimension of space and time. There’s a term for such locales: thin places. And: did you ever go tick-tacking a few nights before Halloween? It’s pranks like tapping ominously on windows without being caught or tossing corn kernels all over a front porch. Also, horses run throughout our language, a relic of when these animals were much more commonplace in everyday life. For example, the best place to get information about a horse you might buy isn’t from th ..read more
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Had the Radish (Rebroadcast) - 29 January 2024
A Way with Words
by Hosted by Martha Barnette and Grant Barrett. Produced by Stefanie Levine.
2M ago
Your first name is very personal, but what if you don’t like it? For some people, changing their name works out great but for others it may create more problems than it solves. And: at least three towns in the U.S. were christened with names formed by spelling a word backward. There’s a name for such names: they’re called ananyms. Plus, the Iowa town with a curious name: What Cheer. And: a brain game involving kangaroo words, had the radish, landed up vs. ended up, who struck John, English on a ball, whoop it up, affirming the Appalachian dialect, Sunday driver, and lots more. Read full show n ..read more
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