Cliches. Organic. Bully pulpit. Fimfy.

Cliches. Organic. Bully pulpit. Fimfy.

951. In honor of National Cliché day, we uncover why some overused phrases rub us the wrong way. What is the boundary between idioms, slang, and clichés—and should we give "adulting" a break? Then, we trace the 700-year history of "organic," from bodily organs to natural growth, and ask whether using a bully pulpit makes someone a bad person.

The "cliche" segment was written by Kirk Hazen, a professor of linguistics at West Virginia University, and Jordan Lovejoy, a visiting assistant professor of American Studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. It first appeared on The Conversation and appears here through a Creative Commons license (BY-ND 4.0).

| Transcript.

| Subscribe to the newsletter for regular updates.

| Watch my LinkedIn Learning writing courses.

| Peeve Wars card game.

| Grammar Girl books.

| HOST: Mignon Fogarty

| VOICEMAIL: 833-214-GIRL (833-214-4475) or https://sayhi.chat/grammargirl

| Grammar Girl is part of the Quick and Dirty Tips podcast network.

  • Audio engineer: Nathan Semes
  • Advertising Operations Specialist: Morgan Christianson
  • Marketing and Publicity Assistant: Davina Tomlin
  • Digital Operations Specialist: Holly Hutchings
  • Marketing Temp: Kamryn Lacey

| Theme music by Catherine Rannus.

| Grammar Girl Social Media Links: YouTube. TikTok. Facebook. Instagram. LinkedIn. Mastodon.


Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Avsnitt(966)

229 Understanding Voice and Tone in Writing

229 Understanding Voice and Tone in Writing

Understanding Voice and Tone in Writing Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

1 Juli 20107min

228 Comma Splice

228 Comma Splice

Comma Splice Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

25 Juni 20106min

226 How to Use Transition Words

226 How to Use Transition Words

How to Use Transition Words Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

17 Juni 20105min

224 When to Use Articles Before Nouns

224 When to Use Articles Before Nouns

When to Use Articles Before Nouns Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

4 Juni 20107min

222 Dashes, Parentheses, and Commas

222 Dashes, Parentheses, and Commas

Dashes, Parentheses, and Commas Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

21 Maj 20108min

219 "Bad" Versus "Badly"

219 "Bad" Versus "Badly"

"Bad" Versus "Badly" Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

30 Apr 20106min

220 How to Eliminate Adverbs

220 How to Eliminate Adverbs

How to Eliminate Adverbs Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

29 Apr 20105min

217 What Is Poetic License?

217 What Is Poetic License?

What Is Poetic License? Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

15 Apr 20104min

Populärt inom Utbildning

historiepodden-se
rss-bara-en-till-om-missbruk-medberoende-2
det-skaver
alska-oss
sektledare
harrisons-dramatiska-historia
nu-blir-det-historia
allt-du-velat-veta
johannes-hansen-podcast
roda-vita-rosen
not-fanny-anymore
rss-sjalsligt-avkladd
rikatillsammans-om-privatekonomi-rikedom-i-livet
i-vantan-pa-katastrofen
handen-pa-hjartat
dumforklarat
sa-in-i-sjalen
rss-max-tant-med-max-villman
rss-pa-insidan-med-bjorn-rudman
sex-pa-riktigt-med-marika-smith