Who was the first to 'spill the beans'? | IDIOM ORIGINS
In this episode, Jess and Rob 'spill the beans' about all manner of food-related idioms. 🍌 Why does 'going bananas' mean going mad? ☕️ Who is the Joe in a 'cup of Joe'? 🍏 What did we compare apples...
17 Sep 202544min
Why are we saying 'Caesar' wrong? | TITLES & POWER
In this episode, Rob and Jess take a right royal romp through the etymologies of eminent titles. They discuss the origins of words like "lord", "emperor", "queen" and a whole host of others: 🏛️ How ...
10 Sep 202543min
What does 'stegosaurus' literally mean? | DINOSAUR NAMES
We’re digging into prehistoric word origins. In this episode, Jess and Rob unearth the literal meanings behind the names of the dinosaurs. 🦖 What does Tyrannosaurus rex really mean? 🦕 Why is Stegos...
3 Sep 202541min
Why is England called 'England'? | COUNTRY NAME ORIGINS
We're taking a world tour of word origins. In this episode, Jess and Rob discuss how a multitude of countries got their names. 🇺🇸 Where was the original "America"? 🇬🇧 Why is Britain called "Great...
27 Aug 202542min
Why do news anchors talk like that? | JOURNALESE
BREAKING: Rob and Jess uncover news clichés and weird journalistic words. 📺 Why do TV news anchors talk in that strange way?🗞️ Why do newspaper journalists spell lead as "lede"?🎤 Why do journalists...
20 Aug 202545min
How could one man write a dictionary? | SAMUEL JOHNSON
Samuel Johnson's 1755 dictionary was one heck of an achievement. But it is also far from perfect. In this episode, Jess and Rob discuss some of the more amusing entries within its pages, and even the ...
13 Aug 202543min
Why do pilots sit in a 'cockpit'? | AVIATION WORDS
Welcome aboard flight WU321 bound for Etymology Island. In this episode, Rob and Jess take to the skies and soar through the word origins of a multitude of aviation terms.✈️ Is it an 'airplane' or an ...
6 Aug 202547min
How did currencies get their names? | MONEY WORDS
In for a penny, in for a pound: Rob and Jess discuss money word origins in this episode of Words Unravelled. 💰 Where did the dollar sign come from? 💷 What is the British currency a pound of? 🤑 Whi...
30 Jul 202550min
