I’m currently watching South Korea play Mexico (2-0 to Mexico at the moment). A few minutes ago, Mexico got a free kick, which made me realise how odd the word free can be in English. Continue reading
Free Hat
thoughts about English
What’s the Difference Between a Jacket and a Coat?
When writing about Melania Trump in yesterday’s post, I realised that I’d written a few times in the initial paragraphs that she’d been wearing a controversial coat.
No, that can’t be right, I thought.
You see, it’s June, so surely she was wearing a jacket. Continue reading
You’re Dangerously Low on Space
This is something my phone has been telling me recently, which, frankly, I’m quite sceptical about. Am I really in danger? Continue reading
That Just Doesn’t Cut the Mustard
George Hamilton, main football commentator on Irish broadcaster RTÉ, is very fond of a groan-inducing pun. This evening, while referring to a Tunisian player who plays in Dijon in France, he said, That pass doesn’t cut the mustard!
Dijon, mustard… you get it.
Anyway, this made me wonder why, when something isn’t up to the standard we desire, we say it doesn’t cut the mustard? Continue reading
Plucky Mexico
More football. Don’t worry, I’m not going to write something about football every day for the next month. I’m really not that interested in it. But I was struck today by the use of an adjective that’s often used in sport: Continue reading
Lie or Lie?
Lying is bad. Except when you’re tired, and need to go to bed, in which case, it’s good. Continue reading
Ha Ha, Charade You Are!
Well, I’m a badass Cowboy livin’ in the Cowboy days.
Wiggy, wiggy, scratch, yo, yo, bang, bang.
Me and Artemus Clyde frog go save Salma Hayek from the big metal spider.
A wiggy wig wig wiggy wiggy wig
Fresh cowboy from the west side
Wiggy wiggy scratch yo yo bang bang
Me and Artemus Clyde frog go save Salma frog polly prissy pants
Go down to, well… rumpletumpskin
Yes, this is the second post I’ve got from a single song. One thing that really struck me when listening to “Pigs (Three of Them)” was the phrase in the title. I’d heard it before, you see, and I knew straight away from where. Continue reading
English-Language Thoughts 