We celebrate our 200th episode (!) by taking a trip back in time to look at some words that popped up 200 years ago.
Mar 15, 2025•31 min
Put on your best evening wear, we're getting fancy! Or maybe we're just getting stuffy. This week we're looking at language that's grammatically correct, but that sounds like you're just trying to impress.
Mar 08, 2025•29 min
We answer listeners' most burning language questions, including one about how the letter "R" seems to disappear and reappear in the strangest places, and about whether or not anything can ever be called "epic" ever again.
Mar 01, 2025•36 min
Latin may be a dead language, but it sure seems to come up a lot! This week, we'll look at some common Latin phrases that we think we understand, but that we may not get quite right.
Feb 22, 2025•29 min
We return to our series looking at the most devilish words ever found on the SAT.
Feb 15, 2025•31 min
We celebrate the season by looking at some winter-related idioms.
Feb 08, 2025•31 min
We've tackled the differences between American and British English, but let's not forget Canadians also have a language of their own.
Feb 01, 2025•29 min
The year is 1066: William the Conqueror lands upon the shores of England and changes the course of the English language forever. So what does that mean for us?
Jan 25, 2025•30 min
We take a look at some modern-day idioms, where they came from, and what they could possibly mean.
Jan 18, 2025•29 min
We look at a list of words people want to banish in this new year. Some of them we agree with, some of them we won't let go without a fight!
Jan 11, 2025•29 min
We continue our alphabetical trip through the most challenging words from the SAT.
Jan 04, 2025•29 min
We'll run through the various dictionaries' selections for the words of the year and offer up a few of our own.
Dec 28, 2024•29 min
What could be more fun for the holidays than digging into the bizarre world of Latin and Greek plurals? Nothing! That's what!
Dec 21, 2024•29 min
We wade into the social media wars as we take a look at some of the most common language mistakes people make when they're posting online.
Dec 14, 2024•29 min
We hit a number of language-related topics this week, kicked off by a listener question about what the heck a participle actually is.
Dec 07, 2024•24 min
This week, Kathy and Ross quiz Fletcher on words that are surprising relatives– and some that are surprisingly not.
Nov 30, 2024•29 min
We look at some names of famous people that, when you pronounce them correctly, can let people know you're an expert... or a snob.
Nov 23, 2024•30 min
The letter of the week is "B," as we move on to the second part in our series looking at the hardest words on the SAT.
Nov 16, 2024•29 min
This week, we're here to help you relax a little bit by telling you that some of those little language mistakes that raise your blood pressure might not actually be mistakes.
Nov 09, 2024•29 min
With the U.S. election upon us, Kathy and Ross quiz Fletcher on the pronunciation and origins of some words related to our democratic process.
Nov 02, 2024•29 min
Just in time for Halloween, we're talking about some of the creepy parts of the language world, including ghost words and some horrifying hyphens.
Oct 26, 2024•29 min
We're looking at the differences between what people in Italy call their food and what they call it in one very specific place in the world (here's a hint: Tony Soprano has a lot to say about this).
Oct 19, 2024•29 min
We return to one of our favorite topics: mistakes that aren't really mistakes, even though a whole lot of people will tell you they're mistakes.
Oct 12, 2024•29 min
A Merriam-Webster poll sets off our conversation today as we make our picks for the most overrated word, the most underrated word, the most pleasant word to say, and a number of other mosts, bests, and worsts.
Oct 05, 2024•29 min
There are a whole lot of things you can say when someone thanks you for something... But what do they all really mean?
Sep 28, 2024•29 min
We continue our fascination with rules we don't know we know with a look at the importance of where we put the stress when we say words out loud.
Sep 21, 2024•29 min
Jump in your estate car and head to the chemist, this week we're looking at some British equivalents of American English words.
Sep 14, 2024•29 min
The letter of the day is "A"! We're getting you (or your kids) ready for the SATs with some tricky vocabulary from the beginning of the alphabet.
Sep 07, 2024•29 min
Must, could, should, shall, might, may... We dig into the weird, wiggly, weaselly world of modal verbs.
Aug 31, 2024•29 min
Grab your swimsuit! Or your bathing suit. That's up to you. We're heading to the beach for a look at the language of tides, waves, and other things beachy.
Aug 24, 2024•29 min
