A Way with Words

Series produced by A Way with Words

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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.


188 Pieces

Order by: Newest First | Oldest First
Blue Streak (#1598)
From: A Way with Words
Series: A Way with Words
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How long can a newly married woman be called a bride? Does bride apply only as long as her wedding day, or does it extend right on through the coup...

Bought by RADIOLEX, KTSW 89.9, WYAP, WSLR, KTXK and more


  • Added: Aug 08, 2022
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 15
Mystery Date (#1577)
From: A Way with Words
Series: A Way with Words
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A librarian opens a book and finds a mysterious invitation scribbled on the back of a business card. Another discovers a child's letter to the Toot...

Bought by KTXK, WYAP, RADIOLEX, KTSW 89.9, WNIN and more


  • Added: Aug 01, 2022
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 16
I Don't Have the Spoons (#1597)
From: A Way with Words
Series: A Way with Words
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Whether it's a Rubik's cube or a round of Wordle, why do so many of us find puzzles irresistible? A new book celebrates the allure and psychologica...

Bought by KTXK, WYAP, KTSW 89.9, RADIOLEX, KVSC and more


  • Added: Jul 25, 2022
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 17
Sour Pickle (#1576)
From: A Way with Words
Series: A Way with Words
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You know that Yogi Berra quote about how Nobody ever comes here; it's too crowded? Actually, the first person to use this was actress Suzanne Ridge...

Bought by KTSW 89.9, RADIOLEX, WYAP, WNIN, WSLR and more


  • Added: Jul 18, 2022
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 16
Not My Circus (#1575)
From: A Way with Words
Series: A Way with Words
Piece image
Throwing cheese and shaky cheese are two very different things. In baseball, hard cheese refers to a powerful fastball, and probably comes from a s...

Bought by KTXK, KTAL-LP [Las Cruces Community Radio], KTSW 89.9, RADIOLEX, KVSC and more


  • Added: Jul 11, 2022
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 17
Excuse the Hogs (#1596)
From: A Way with Words
Series: A Way with Words
Piece image
When a teenager went a week without talking as part of a school project, he noticed a surprising side effect: Instead of rehearsing a response to w...

Bought by KTAL-LP [Las Cruces Community Radio], KTXK, KTSW 89.9, WYAP, KHOL (Jackson Hole Community Radio) and more


  • Added: Jul 04, 2022
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 16
Scooter-Pooting (#1574)
From: A Way with Words
Series: A Way with Words
Piece image
Old. Elderly. Senior. Why are we so uncomfortable when we talk about reaching a certain point in life? An 82-year-old seeks a more positive term to...

Bought by KTXK, WYAP, WNIN, WSLR, WPCA-LP and more


  • Added: Jun 27, 2022
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 15
All That and a Bag of Chips (#1595)
From: A Way with Words
Series: A Way with Words
Piece image
We tend to take the index of a book for granted, but centuries ago, these helpful lists were viewed with suspicion. Some even worried that indexes ...

Bought by RADIOLEX, KTXK, KTSW 89.9, WSLR, KHOL (Jackson Hole Community Radio) and more


  • Added: Jun 20, 2022
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 17
Gold Dance (#1573)
From: A Way with Words
Series: A Way with Words
Piece image
People who hunt treasure with metal detectors have a lingo all their own. Canslaw means the shreds of aluminum cans left after a lawnmower ran over...

Bought by KNCT FM, WSLR, KTSW 89.9, RADIOLEX, KHOL (Jackson Hole Community Radio) and more


  • Added: Jun 13, 2022
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 17
By a Long Shot (#1572)
From: A Way with Words
Series: A Way with Words
Piece image
Imagine telling someone how to get to your home, but without using the name of your street, or any other street within 10 miles. Could you do it? W...

Bought by RADIOLEX, KTSW 89.9, WYAP, KNCT FM, WSLR and more


  • Added: Jun 06, 2022
  • Length: 54:30
  • Purchases: 18
Familiar Strangers (#1594)
From: A Way with Words
Series: A Way with Words
Piece image
This week on "A Way with Words": If you take up texting and social media late in life, there's a lot to learn! A 20-something wants advice getting ...

Bought by KTXK, KTSW 89.9, RADIOLEX, WYAP, WSLR and more


  • Added: May 30, 2022
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 18
Word Hoard (#1593)
From: A Way with Words
Series: A Way with Words
Piece image
Ever wonder what medieval England looked and sounded like? In Old English, the word hord meant "treasure" and your wordhord was the treasure of wor...

Bought by KTXK, RADIOLEX, KTSW 89.9, WYAP, WSLR and more


  • Added: May 23, 2022
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 18
When Pigs Fly (#1571)
From: A Way with Words
Series: A Way with Words
Piece image
Don't move my cheese! It's a phrase middle managers use to talk about adapting to change in the workplace. It comes from a popular 1990s business b...

Bought by KTXK, KTSW 89.9, RADIOLEX, WYAP, WSLR and more


  • Added: May 16, 2022
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 17
Cool Beans (#1570)
From: A Way with Words
Series: A Way with Words
Piece image
If you speak a second or third language, you may remember the first time you dreamed in that new tongue. But does this milestone mean you're actual...

Bought by KTAL-LP [Las Cruces Community Radio], RADIOLEX, WYAP, WSLR, WNIN and more


  • Added: May 09, 2022
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 16
You Talk Like a Sausage (#1592)
From: A Way with Words
Series: A Way with Words
Piece image
Do you refer to your dog or cat as "somebody"? As in: When you love somebody that much, you don't mind if they slobber. In other words, is your pet...

Bought by KNCT FM, KTSW 89.9, KTAL-LP [Las Cruces Community Radio], WYAP, RADIOLEX and more


  • Added: May 02, 2022
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 18
Love Bites (#1569)
From: A Way with Words
Series: A Way with Words
Piece image
The word filibuster has a long and colorful history, going back to the days when pirates roamed the high seas. Today it refers to hijacking a piece...

Bought by KTAL-LP [Las Cruces Community Radio], KTXK, KTSW 89.9, WYAP, KHOL (Jackson Hole Community Radio) and more


  • Added: Apr 25, 2022
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 17
Pushing the Envelope (#1591)
From: A Way with Words
Series: A Way with Words
Piece image
Sure, there's winter, spring, summer, and fall. But the seasons in between have even more poetic names. In Alaska, greenup describes a sudden, dram...

Bought by KTSW 89.9, WSLR, RADIOLEX, WNIN, WPCA-LP and more


  • Added: Apr 18, 2022
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 16
Lasagna Hog (#1568)
From: A Way with Words
Series: A Way with Words
Piece image
Understanding the varieties of conversational styles can mean the difference between feeling you're understood and being insulted. "High involvemen...

Bought by KTSW 89.9, WYAP, WSLR, KHOL (Jackson Hole Community Radio), RADIOLEX and more


  • Added: Apr 11, 2022
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 17
Primary Colors (#1590)
From: A Way with Words
Series: A Way with Words
Piece image
Centuries ago, monks who took a vow of silence still had to communicate about routine matters, from gardening to equipment repair. So they develope...

Bought by KTXK, KTSW 89.9, WYAP, RADIOLEX, WSLR and more


  • Added: Apr 04, 2022
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 16
Kiss the Cow (#1567)
From: A Way with Words
Series: A Way with Words
Piece image
An anadrome is a word that forms a whole new word when you spell it backwards. For example, the word "stressed" spelled backwards is "desserts." So...

Bought by KTSW 89.9, WYAP, WSLR, RADIOLEX, KTXK and more


  • Added: Mar 28, 2022
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 16

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