I used this expression recently, and wondered where it comes from. Is it related to boots, the footwear? If not, is it related to any other words?
It’s not actually related to the boots that one wears at all, but still has an interesting story to tell. Continue reading
I read something online recently about the Star Wars UK Twitter account teasing an announcement about the next Star Wars film.
Using the verb to tease in this way is fairly new, and always interesting to me. Continue reading
Without getting too political, I’ll just say that this word has been in the news quite a bit today. After seeing it a few times, I began to wonder if there perhaps were an interesting story behind it.
And of course there is! Continue reading
Writing about the word magazine yesterday made me think of another word with a similar range of meanings: canteen. Continue reading
No, not more classic pop.
I was doing my French homework this evening, and one of my tasks was to find the reflexive verbs in a Youtube video about French clichés. What’s that? What’s a reflexive verb? Good question. Continue reading
I’ve been listening to the album Armed Forces by Elvis Costello & the Attractions a lot recently (and currently listening to Kate Bush while drinking a glass of red wine: I think at some point I became someone’s mother without noticing). The album’s best-known song is undoubtedly “Oliver’s Army,” and every time I hear the song on the radio, I think, You never have that song much anymore. Continue reading
Did you know there’s a scientific, very Latin-sounding term for the experience of getting goosebumps? Continue reading
English-Language Thoughts 