359 GG Do You Tell People to Pound Sand ...

1165. Today, we talk with Joan Houston Hall to look at the monumental task of documenting how Americans speak. We look at the Dictionary of American Regional English (DARE), exploring the unique folk words that survive outside of standard dictionaries and how "word wagons" travel ... Show More

1164. This week, we look at the origin of the octothorpe — also known as the pound sign or hashtag — and why it has so many different names. Then, we look at sentence fragments and the secret of "Sir Fragalot" to help you avoid common writing mistakes. A video of the man who inve ... Show More

1163. This week, we look at what it’s like to be a "language detective" with Sali Tagliamonte and how she used her own teenagers as a research lab. We look at a 25-year study on how the phrase "be like" became a permanent fixture of English, why the word "very" is suddenly making ... Show More

Idioms 

Idioms 

<p>An idiom is a phrase that you can't guess the meaning to if you haven't heard it before. These are some useful ones that anyone learning English should know. (To see them written out, check the YouTube version of this episode!)</p> 

Learn an English expression about being polite. 

Weird or weird? English spelling is fascinating – but it's not always straightforward! 

In today’s lesson you will listen to one English dialogue and learn 2 new English idioms. The two idioms are &quot;Catch his eye&quot; and &quot;Catch red-handed&quot;. These English idioms will enhance your ability to properly use advanced English idioms. This lesson will help y ... Show More

Learn an English expression with bite!