Happy Thanksgiving! You’ve heard of the turducken, a chicken stuffed into a duck stuffed into a turkey? Turns out the… Read more Who Invented the Turducken?
Category: Origins
Origins of Clichés (Part 6)
This week I looked up idioms that reference my favourite colour in The Dictionary of Clichés. I hope you enjoy… Read more Origins of Clichés (Part 6)
Origins of Clichés (Part 5)
More food idioms — this time dessert-themed! (Unless otherwise noted, quotations are taken from The Dictionary of Clichés.) Easy as… Read more Origins of Clichés (Part 5)
Origins of Clichés (Part 4)
I thought it would be fun to look up clichés about food and of course The Dictionary of Clichés contains… Read more Origins of Clichés (Part 4)
Origins of Clichés (Part 3)
In honour of our new addition, let’s look at some phrases that refer to babies! As before, the definitions are… Read more Origins of Clichés (Part 3)
Origins of Clichés (Part 2)
Last week I shared clichés based on storms and today I’ve chosen birds as the theme! Once again I started… Read more Origins of Clichés (Part 2)
Origins of Clichés (Part 1)
I’ve decided to start a summer series on the origins of clichés. My starting point will be The Dictionary of… Read more Origins of Clichés (Part 1)
Headlinese
When reading about telegraphese I found myself intrigued by headlinese as well. Both styles attempt to pack accurate meaning into… Read more Headlinese
Telegraphese
Wikipedia defines telegram style, also known as telegraphese, as “a clipped way of writing which abbreviates words and packs information… Read more Telegraphese
The Name of the Pear
There is one pear that is the most common variety throughout the world, excluding Asia. But is it the Stair,… Read more The Name of the Pear
Origins of the Easter Bunny
I must admit that I have not hidden Easter eggs for my kids the last couple of years (I did… Read more Origins of the Easter Bunny
Who Was Charles Ponzi?
Have you read The Glass Hotel by Emily St. John Mandel? One of the threads of the novel involves a… Read more Who Was Charles Ponzi?
Miss Macphail’s Recipe
A few weeks ago I was flipping through our free community newsletter when I came across “Miss Macphail’s recipe,” a… Read more Miss Macphail’s Recipe