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.


220 Pieces

Order by: Newest First | Oldest First
Off the Turnip Truck (#1532)
From: A Way with Words
Series: A Way with Words
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It's hard to imagine now, but there was a time when people disagreed over the best word to use when answering the phone. Alexander Graham Bell sugg...

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


  • Added: Feb 08, 2021
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 16
What the Blazes? (#1562)
From: A Way with Words
Series: A Way with Words
Piece image
What kind of book do people ask for most often in prison? Romance Novels? No. The Bible? No. The most requested books by far are . . . dictionarie...

Bought by KUAT, KTXK, KAWC / Border Radio - KOFA, WSLR, WYAP and more


  • Added: Feb 01, 2021
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 19
Loaded for Bear (#1531)
From: A Way with Words
Series: A Way with Words
Piece image
One way to make your new business look trendy is to use two nouns separated by an ampersand, like Peach & Creature . . . or Rainstorm & Egg. A tong...

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


  • Added: Jan 25, 2021
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 18
Mudlarking (#1561)
From: A Way with Words
Series: A Way with Words
Piece image
Twice a day the River Thames recedes, revealing a muddy shoreline. Hobbyists known as mudlarks stroll the surface searching for objects that have f...

Bought by KUAT, WSLR, WYAP, KTSW 89.9, KMUN and more


  • Added: Jan 18, 2021
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 19
Mrs. Astor's Horse (#1530)
From: A Way with Words
Series: A Way with Words
Piece image
"What has a head like a cat, feet like a cat, a tail like a cat, but isn't a cat?" Answer: a kitten! A 1948 children's joke book has lots of these ...

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


  • Added: Jan 12, 2021
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 17
Snaggletooth (#1560)
From: A Way with Words
Series: A Way with Words
Piece image
Many of us struggled with the Old English poem "Beowulf" in high school. But what if you could actually hear "Beowulf" in the English of today? The...

Bought by KUAT, WGHC-LP 98.3 FM Chicago, WSLR, KTSW 89.9, WYAP and more


  • Added: Jan 05, 2021
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 18
At First Blush (#1529)
From: A Way with Words
Series: A Way with Words
Piece image
Book recommendations and the art of apology. Martha and Grant share some good reads, including an opinionated romp through English grammar, a Spani...

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


  • Added: Dec 29, 2020
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 18
Gift Horse (#1528)
From: A Way with Words
Series: A Way with Words
Piece image
The edge of the Grand Canyon. A remote mountaintop, or a medieval cathedral. Some places are so mystical you feel like you're close to another dime...

Bought by KUAT, WSLR, WPCA-LP, WYAP, KVSC and more


  • Added: Dec 22, 2020
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 17
Like a Boiled Owl (#1559)
From: A Way with Words
Series: A Way with Words
Piece image
What's it like to hike the Pacific Crest Trail all the way from Mexico to Canada? You'll end up with sore muscles and blisters, and great stories t...

Bought by KUAT, WCNY, WSLR, KTSW 89.9, WYAP and more


  • Added: Dec 15, 2020
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 17
Had the Radish (#1527)
From: A Way with Words
Series: A Way with Words
Piece image
This week on A Way with Words: Your first name is very personal, but what if you don't like it? For some people, changing their name works out grea...

Bought by KUAT, WSLR, KHOL (Jackson Hole Community Radio), WPCA-LP, WNIN and more


  • Added: Dec 07, 2020
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 17
Your Two Cents (#1558)
From: A Way with Words
Series: A Way with Words
Piece image
Astronauts returning from space say they experience what's called the overview effect, a new understanding of the fragility of our planet and our n...

Bought by KUAT, WSLR, WNIN, KHOL (Jackson Hole Community Radio), WYAP and more


  • Added: Nov 30, 2020
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 18
Abso-Bloomin-Lutely (#1526)
From: A Way with Words
Series: A Way with Words
Piece image
The autocomplete function on your phone comes in handy, of course. But is it changing the way we write and how linguists study language? Also, supp...

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


  • Added: Nov 24, 2020
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 18
Niblings and Nieflings (#1525)
From: A Way with Words
Series: A Way with Words
Piece image
How do actors bring Shakespeare's lines to life so that modern audiences immediately understand the text? One way is to emphasize the names of peop...

Bought by KUAT, KTSW 89.9, WNIN, KHOL (Jackson Hole Community Radio), WYAP and more


  • Added: Nov 16, 2020
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 17
Sock it to Me (#1557)
From: A Way with Words
Series: A Way with Words
Piece image
In the 15th century, the word respair meant "to have hope again." Although this word fell out of use, it's among dozens collected in a new book of...

Bought by KUAT, WSLR, Royalton Community Radio, KHOL (Jackson Hole Community Radio), WPCA-LP and more


  • Added: Nov 09, 2020
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 18
Kite in a Phonebooth (#1524)
From: A Way with Words
Series: A Way with Words
Piece image
Stunt performers in movies have their own jargon for talking about their dangerous work. They refer to a stunt, for example, as a gag. Across the c...

Bought by KUAT, KTXK, WSLR, KTSW 89.9, Royalton Community Radio and more


  • Added: Nov 03, 2020
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 17
Strawberry Moon (#1522)
From: A Way with Words
Series: A Way with Words
Piece image
We asked for your thoughts about whether cursive writing should be taught in schools -- and you replied with a resounding "Yes!" Here's why: Cursiv...

Bought by KUAT, KTXK, Royalton Community Radio, WYAP, KHOL (Jackson Hole Community Radio) and more


  • Added: Oct 26, 2020
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 20
Good Vibrations (#1556)
From: A Way with Words
Series: A Way with Words
Piece image
Asthenosphere, a geologist's term for the molten layer beneath the earth's crust, sparks a journey that stretches all the way from ancient Greece t...

Bought by KUAT, KTXK, KQRU FM LP, Royalton Community Radio, WYAP and more


  • Added: Oct 19, 2020
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 20
Spill the Tea (#1521)
From: A Way with Words
Series: A Way with Words
Piece image
If someone urges you to spill the tea, they probably don't want you tipping over a hot beverage. Originally, the tea here was the letter T, as in t...

Bought by KUAT, KQRU FM LP, Royalton Community Radio, WYAP, WNIN and more


  • Added: Oct 13, 2020
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 20
Mystery Drawer (#1555)
From: A Way with Words
Series: A Way with Words
Piece image
Amid court-ordered busing in the 1970s, a middle-school teacher tried to distract her nervous students on the first day of class with this strange ...

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


  • Added: Oct 05, 2020
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 20
Dirty Laundry (#1520)
From: A Way with Words
Series: A Way with Words
Piece image
When you had sleepovers as a child, what did you call the makeshift beds you made on the floor? In some places, you call those bedclothes and blank...

Bought by KUAT, KQRU FM LP, KTXK, Royalton Community Radio, WYAP and more


  • Added: Sep 28, 2020
  • Length: 54:00
  • Purchases: 16

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