Category Archives: Meanings

Meanings: “Thespian”

Posted on May 6, 2013 by

May 6, 2013 Thespians unite! News from all over: “A troupe of street drummers got a shock when Helen Mirren, dressed as Queen Elizabeth II, emerged from a London theatre to berate them for disrupting her show,” reports The Telegraph, … Continue reading →

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Meanings: Bologna—or is it Baloney?

Posted on May 2, 2013 by

May 2, 2103 Today, Language Log sorts out the derisive term “bologna,” or should we say “baloney”?  Mark Liberman explains that it isn’t even clear that “baloney,” as an expression declaring some statement to be nonsense, is even related to … Continue reading →

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Meanings: “Probe”

Posted on May 1, 2013 by

May 1, 2013 “Probe” comes from Latin probare, which is also the root of our word “prove.” By the early 15th century it had come to refer (says etymology.com) to an “instrument for exploring wounds” and also to “an examination.” … Continue reading →

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Meanings: “POSSLQ”

Posted on April 15, 2013 by

April 15, 2013 I was reminded yesterday of “POSSLQ,” a Census Bureau term introduced in the 1970s to collect data about co-habitation in the United States. “POSSLQ” is an acronym for Persons of Opposite Sex Sharing Living Quarters.  The term … Continue reading →

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Meanings: “Cliché” and “Stereotype”

Posted on March 22, 2013 by

March 22, 2013 From the Washington Post’s Outlook section, we have the list below of phrases to be avoided. Avoided why? Mostly because they are clichés or stereotypes. But where do the terms “cliché” and “stereotype” come from? Both come … Continue reading →

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