TWTS: "Hunky dory" is doing just fine
If "hunky dory" means the same thing as "right as rain," then we face the question of how right rain is.
That's What They Say
Funner, snuck, and LOL are all things that we're hearing people say these days.That's What They Say is a weekly segment on Michigan Public that explores our changing language. University of Michigan English Professor Anne Curzan studies linguistics and the history of the English language. Each week she'll discuss why we say what we say with Michigan Public All Things Considered host Rebecca Hector.That's What They Say airs Fridays at 4:45 p.m. and Sundays at 9:35 a.m. on Michigan Public and you…
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TWTS: "Highfalutin" is too good for one spelling
While we may know highfalutin language when we hear it, we don't all agree about how to spell "highfalutin" or where it comes from.
TWTS: Be careful what you hear around the scuttlebutt
We exchange scuttlebutt at the proverbial water cooler, and there's an etymological clue in that.
TWTS: Time to talk about your watch
The little clock we wear on our wrist could be called a clock. Instead, it has long had its own term, being called a watch instead.
TWTS: Careful how you're using that 👍
Sometimes new slang jumps out in front of you, waving its hands, or thumbs, so that you can’t help but notice it. Sometimes it just sneaks up on you.
TWTS: Understanding the depth of "fathom"
We can count fathoms when we’re measuring things. We can also metaphorically fathom or not fathom things.
TWTS: Speaking of "bespoke"
This is a bespoke segment of That’s What They Say that focuses on “bespoke.”
TWTS: Up and down your alley... and your street
If it’s up your alley, it might also be up your street. And perhaps it’s down rather than up.
TWTS: One rank, two pronunciations
You say "lieutenant," I say “leftenant” but let’s not call the whole thing off.
TWTS: The wonky journey of "wonky"
There’s more than one way to be wonky, and not all of them are bad.
TWTS: Are we canceling adverbs?
Adverbs don’t always get a lot of love, captured powerfully in the writing tip “Abolish the adverbs.”
TWTS: Scrimping, skimping, and the degrees of frugality
We scrimp and we save, and we skimp and we still save, which makes one wonder whether scrimping is different from skimping
TWTS: From fishmongers to warmongers - and warmongerers
Cheesemongers sell cheese, and gossipmongers usually start the gossip or spread it, rather than sell it.
TWTS: The death of doornails
Many of us don’t talk about doornails very often, but sometimes we will when things are really, well, dead.
TWTS: When "f" and "v" were sort of one
If you know how the sound "f" worked in Old English, it suddenly isn’t mysterious why the "f" in "leaf" turns into a "v" in the plural form "leaves."
TWTS: "Peak" felt fine until it was "peaked"
TWTS: Why no one is "gonna Pittsburgh"
If I say I’m gonna do it, I don’t necessarily mean I’m headed out the door right now to do it.
TWTS: From "6-7" to sixes and sevens
2025 had lots of people talking about sixes and sevens, but not in the loose ends kind of way.
TWTS: A hangout is a great place to hang out
Next time you’re hanging out with friends, you can debate just how slangy the phrasal verb ‘hang out’ is.
TWTS: Fore! It's a lightning round
This may be one of the only times that throw pillows, golf, and curling all get wrapped into the same discussion.