Pylimitics

A US-based story or Hollywood film about crime or criminals set in the first two-thirds of the 20th century is pretty likely to include somebody talking about “going on the lam.” What they mean is going on the run from the law; evading arrest. They might also say something like “beat it, the cops are… Continue reading

If something is fine, valid, or acceptable, there are plenty of English words available to communicate that judgement. One of them is “cromulent,” as in “…it’s a perfectly cromulent word.” You don’t hear “cromulent” as much as some of its synonyms, but you might run across it here and there. David X. Cohen, a scholar… Continue reading

Most people know that an “acronym” is a word created from the first letters of a group of different words, like “NASA” (National Aeronautics and Space Administration). The “-nym” part of “acronym” is from the Greek word “onoma,” which means name. The “acro-“ part is also from Greek: “akros” means the top of something.  You… Continue reading

Keeping your nose to the grindstone means continuing to work; paying attention. It actually comes from old grist mills, which had big turning stones for grinding grain into flour. The stones, which were several feet across and weighed tons, had to be adjusted precisely so they ground the grain, but didn’t grind against each other.… Continue reading

Keeping your nose to the grindstone means continuing to work; paying attention. It actually comes from old grist mills, which had big turning stones for grinding grain into flour. The stones, which were several feet across and weighed tons, had to be adjusted precisely so they ground the grain, but didn’t grind against each other.… Continue reading