cover of episode Singing Sand (Rebroadcast) - 26 August 2024

Singing Sand (Rebroadcast) - 26 August 2024

2024/8/26
logo of podcast A Way with Words - language, linguistics, and callers from all over

A Way with Words - language, linguistics, and callers from all over

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Shownotes Transcript

Cat hair may be something you brush off, but cat hair is also a slang term) that means “money.” In the same way, cat beer isn’t alcoholic — some people use cat beer as a joking term for “milk.” And imagine walking on a beach with a long stretch of shoreline. With each step, the ground makes a squeaking sound under your feet. There’s a term for the kind of sand that makes this yip-yip-yip sound. It’s called barking sand. Plus, a listener describes some of the English she heard in a small Alaskan coastal town. It’s a rich mixture of fishermen’s slang, along with the speech of Native people, and the Norwegians who settled there. All that, and a triple-threat puzzle, paternoster lakesbarely vs. nearlycomprised of vs. composed ofcarkkittenballthe pokeyhappy as a boardinghouse pupclose, but no tomato, and plenty more.

Read full show notes, hear hundreds of free episodes, send your thoughts and questions, and learn more on the A Way with Words website: https://waywordradio.org/contact). Be a part of the show: call 1 (877) 929-9673) toll-free in the United States and Canada; worldwide, call or text/SMS +1 (619) 800-4443). Email [email protected]). Copyright Wayword, Inc., a 501(c)(3) corporation.

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