A Way with Words

Series produced by A Way with Words

Series image

A Way with Words is a national, lively, hour-long public radio show about language, on the air since 1998. Author/journalist Martha Barnette and linguist/lexicographer Grant Barrett take listener calls about slang, grammar, old sayings, word origins, regional dialects, family expressions, and speaking and writing well. There are no carriage fees.

Learn more about the show, its hosts, and its history, and read station and listener testimonials on the A Way with Words website.


219 Pieces

Order by: Newest First | Oldest First
Piece image
A clever pun can make the difference between a so-so phrase and a memorable one. The phrase "the last straw" refers to an old fable about too many ...

Bought by KUAT, WUOT 91.9 FM, Tri States Public Radio, KQRU FM LP, KTSW 89.9 and more


  • Added: May 26, 2020
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 15
Piece image
A stereotype is a preconceived notion about a person or group. Originally, though, the word stereotype referring to a printing device used to produ...

Bought by KUAT, Tri States Public Radio, KQRU FM LP, KTXK, KTSW 89.9 and more


  • Added: May 18, 2020
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 17
Piece image
Sometimes it's a challenge to give a book a chance: How many pages should you read before deciding it's not worth your time? There's a new formula ...

Bought by KUAT, Tri States Public Radio, KQRU FM LP, KTSW 89.9, Royalton Community Radio and more


  • Added: May 12, 2020
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 16
Piece image
Martha and Grant have book recommendations, including a collection of short stories inspired by dictionaries, and a techno-thriller for teens. Or, ...

Bought by KUAT, Tri States Public Radio, KQRU FM LP, KTXK, KTSW 89.9 and more


  • Added: May 05, 2020
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 15
Piece image
The game of baseball has always inspired colorful commentary. Sometimes that means using familiar words in unfamiliar ways. The word "stuff," for e...

Bought by KUAT, Tri States Public Radio, KQRU FM LP, Royalton Community Radio, WYAP and more


  • Added: Apr 28, 2020
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 15
Piece image
How colors got their names, and a strange way to write. The terms "blue" and "orange" arrived in English via French, so why didn't we also adapt th...

Bought by KUAT, Tri States Public Radio, KQRU FM LP, KTXK, Royalton Community Radio and more


  • Added: Apr 21, 2020
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 14
Piece image
The adjective canine refers to dogs, and feline refers to cats. But how does English address other groups of animals? Plus, cabin fever has been ar...

Bought by KUAT, Tri States Public Radio, KQRU FM LP, KOJB 90.1 FM The eagle, KVSC and more


  • Added: Apr 13, 2020
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 17
Piece image
There's a proverb that goes "Beloved children have many names." That's at least as true when it comes to the names we give our pets. "Fluffy" becom...

Bought by KUAT, Tri States Public Radio, KQRU FM LP, KTXK, Royalton Community Radio and more


  • Added: Apr 06, 2020
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 15
Piece image
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 ...

Bought by KUAT, Tri States Public Radio, KQRU FM LP, WYAP, KTXK and more


  • Added: Mar 30, 2020
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 15
Piece image
Vocabulary that trickles down from the top of the world. Malamute, kayak, and parka are just some of the words that have found their way into Engli...

Bought by KUAT, Tri States Public Radio, Royalton Community Radio, WYAP, KQRU FM LP and more


  • Added: Mar 23, 2020
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 14
Piece image
Have you ever googled your own name and found someone else who goes by the very same moniker? There's a word for that: googleganger. Plus, the lang...

Bought by KUAT, Tri States Public Radio, KQRU FM LP, KVSC, WYAP and more


  • Added: Mar 18, 2020
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 10
Piece image
Funny cat videos and cute online photos inspire equally adorable slang terms we use to talk about them. When a cat leaves its tongue out, that's a ...

Bought by KUAT, Tri States Public Radio, KQRU FM LP, KTXK, KVSC and more


  • Added: Mar 09, 2020
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 14
Piece image
One secret to writing well is . . . there is no secret! There's no substitute for simply sitting down day after day to practice the craft and learn...

Bought by KUAT, Tri States Public Radio, KTSW 89.9, KTXK, WYAP and more


  • Added: Mar 02, 2020
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 15
Piece image
She sells seashells by the seashore. Who is the she in this tongue twister? Some claim it's the young Mary Aning, who went on to become a famous 19...

Bought by KUAT, Tri States Public Radio, KTSW 89.9, KQRU FM LP, KTXK and more


  • Added: Feb 17, 2020
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 15
Piece image
A hundred years ago, suffragists lobbied to win women the right to vote. Linguistically speaking, though, suffrage isn't about "suffering." It's fr...

Bought by KUAT, Tri States Public Radio, KTSW 89.9, KQRU FM LP, WYAP and more


  • Added: Feb 03, 2020
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 14
Piece image
One of the most powerful words you'll ever hear -- and one of the most poignant -- isn't in dictionaries yet. But it probably will be one day. The ...

Bought by KUAT, Tri States Public Radio, KTSW 89.9, WYAP, WPCA-LP and more


  • Added: Jan 20, 2020
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 14
Piece image
You may have a favorite word in English, but what about your favorite in another language? The Spanish term ojala is especially handy for expressin...

Bought by KUAT, Tri States Public Radio, KTSW 89.9, KQRU FM LP, WYAP and more


  • Added: Jan 13, 2020
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 14
Piece image
Questions from young listeners and conversations about everything from shifting slang to a bizarre cooking technique. Kids ask about how to talk ab...

Bought by KUAT, Radio Kansas, Tri States Public Radio, KQRU FM LP, WCMU Michigan and more


  • Added: Mar 26, 2019
  • Length: 25:59
  • Purchases: 7
Piece image
Our youngest listeners have questions about everything from love to one of their favorite foods. Kids ask why we might end a text with the letters ...

Bought by KUAT, KQRU FM LP, Tri States Public Radio, KMXT, 90.1 WFYI Public Radio and more


  • Added: Aug 30, 2017
  • Length: 29:45
  • Purchases: 9