1455-Caller-Jack-Harp by A Way with Words

Does the expression to harp on something, as in “to nag,” have anything to do with the stringed instrument one plays by plucking? Yes. As early as the 16th century to harp all of one string meant to keep playing the same single note monotonously. http://waywordradio.org via Pocket http://ift.tt/2eHUkX3

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1455-Caller-Helen-Amount-Vs-Number by A Way with Words

An attorney in El Centro, California, is bothered by the phrase a large amount of people, because the word amount is usually applied to mass nouns, not count nouns. There are exceptions, however. http://waywordradio.org via Pocket http://ift.tt/2eXvvvx

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1455-Caller-James-Counting-Mississippi by A Way with Words

A Seattle, Washington, listener wants to know why, when marking time, we say One Mississippi, Two Mississippi, as opposed to other states or rivers. In the United Kingdom, they’re more likely to say hippopotamus. Some people count instead with the word banana, or Nevada, or one thousand one. via Pocket http://ift.tt/2dN8jNW

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1455-Caller-John-Cat’s-Mother by A Way with Words

A New Hampshire listener recalls that as a boy, when he talked friends within earshot of his mother and said referred to her as She, his mother would pipe up with She, being the cat’s mother. via Pocket http://ift.tt/2e1H3sI

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1455-Chandelier-Pain by A Way with Words

In a powerful essay on white privilege, Good Black News editor Lori Lakin Hutcherson includes the term chandelier pain to describe how painful accumulated slights can be. via Pocket http://ift.tt/2dB3CDj

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