Q. It is too easy to plunge into the pool of corporate jargon, especially if these spray-cheese words find their way into official corporate documents. ‘Our mission critical for 2024? Effective Accelerationism.’ If we’re lucky, the jargon becomes easy company short-hand. “Ah, yes. This accelerationism does seem effective.” More likely

Q. Time to spill the beans about ‘spilling the beans’ (shameless). How did revealing juicy secrets come to be known as spilling the beans? . A. If so-and-so ‘spilled the beans,’ chances are good that they did so by accident. Or perhaps they were strongly encouraged (🗡️) to do so.

Q. In Agatha Christie’s 1922 The Secret Adversary, Sir James Peel Edgerton has some pointed advice for Miss Prudence Cowley –  ‘known to her intimate friends for some mysterious reasons as “Tuppence.” Sir James’ nugget? “Great mistake to say too much. Remember that. Never tell all you know – not

Q. Mrs. Hodgepodge nearly did it. Her cabbage jelly was almost the best at the fair – second place – but it didn’t win. ‘Close, but no cigar.’ It’s a phrase we’ll throw out there without thinking, but where does it originate? . A. ‘Close, but no cigar’ is said

Q. What are some of the lucky words that have been bestowed official word status in the 2024 Oxford dictionary? . A. With a 150-year history and 500,000 word and phrase entries, the Oxford Dictionary is ever evolving. In March of this year, the OED added 1,000 new or revised

Q. It’s all fun and games until you-know-who shows up to suck all the fun out of the air. Such a wet blanket. How is it that fun-suckers came to be known as ‘wet blankets’? . A. Well, there is certainly nothing fun about pulling your favourite blanket out of

Q. You’re ‘in hot water.’ It’s a mess; trouble is brewing. Where does this phrase originate? . A. These origin stories are no joke. Some claim that the phrase is rooted in people spilling boiling water on themselves whilst cooking 😬. Others insist that the idea of being ‘in hot

Q. You’re happy, you’re thrilled, you’re ‘over the moon.’ What’s the origin of this space-hurtling idiom? . A. The idea that happiness = ‘over the moon’ is rooted in the much-chanted ‘Hey Diddle Diddle’ Mother Goose nursery rhyme… Hey Diddle, Diddle Hey, diddle, diddle, The cat and the fiddle, The

Q. Is the English language really that hard to learn? Yes. Yes it is. Our encyclopedic collection of idioms does not help. Exhibit Number One: ‘hit the sack.’ Which sack are we hitting and why? Is this some sort of madcap carnival game? Where did this idiom originate? . A.

Q. Want to see a teenager cringe? Encourage Mum and/or Dad to throw in some ‘hip’ slang during carpool. “Oof. That sounds sus. He just salty because of your drip. Bet!” . 🤦🏽‍♀️ . How to rescue horrified teens from parental slangicide? . A. Perhaps the best slang words are