From "august" to "August." Why the union is always "strong." Nee nee
1047. This week, we look at word pairs like "august/August" that change their meaning when capitalized and how you can make your meaning clear. Then, we look at how we got to the point where U.S. pres...
14 Jan 202515min
The psychology of fandom, with Jennifer Lynn Barnes
1046. Jennifer Lynn Barnes, author of the "Inheritance Games" books, discusses how writing from different points of view can help readers connect with characters in different ways. We also talked abou...
9 Jan 202523min
Does 'Wicked' have a grammar error? What is the 'neck of the woods'? To be Frances
1045. A listener asked if the song "The Wizard and I" should actually be "The Wizard and Me," so we look at how you can tell. And then we look at interesting idioms about familiar places: "neck of the...
7 Jan 202514min
The case of the mystery dialect, with Natalie Schilling
1044. Today, I'm talking about a strange disappearance that forensic linguist Natalie Schilling worked on that she calls "the case of the mystery dialect." This is the original bonus segment from our ...
2 Jan 202520min
2024 words of the year, with John Kelly
1043. "Skibidi," "polarization," "brat," "demure," "enshittification," and more. You might get whiplash from the vacillating vibes of all the words the dictionaries chose this year. I joined John Kell...
30 Dec 202444min
Twee pop, bumbershoot, amongst, and more, with Ben Yagoda
1042. Today, I have the bonus segment from my interview with Ben Yagoda back in September. Ben is the author of the book "Gobsmacked: The British Invasion of American English," and we talked about the...
26 Dec 202414min
'Home' for the holidays. False friends. Hello, Dentist.
1041. Today, we talk about the word "home" and its meaning beyond just a structure, and then we talk about false friends — words in different languages that don't mean what you think they mean.The "ho...
23 Dec 202414min
Struggling with AI: Job loss, energy use, and more, with Christopher Penn
1040. The downsides of AI bother me a lot — job loss, energy use, and the content tsunami. But I also think it's critically important to understand what this technology can do and how it's likely to c...
19 Dec 202422min
