Is there anything particularly loose about a goose — or does that idiom exist only because it rhymes? Bob Garfield and Mike Vuolo investigate.
Visit Lexicon Valley. A Booksmart Studios Production. Episode 295: "Loose as a Goose." With Bob Garfield and Mike Vuolo. Edited and produced by Mike Vuolo. Produced by Livia Bloom Ingram. All rights reserved. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

<description>Is there anything particularly loose about a goose — or does that idiom exist only because it rhymes? Bob Garfield and Mike Vuolo investigate.

Visit Lexicon Valley. A Booksmart Studios Production. Episode 295: "Loose as a Goose." With Bob Garfield and Mike Vuolo. Edited and produced by Mike Vuolo. Produced by Livia Bloom Ingram. All rights reserved.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices</description>

On the mysterious origins of an anserine expression.

Is there anything particularly loose about a goose — or does that idiom exist only because it rhymes? Bob Garfield and Mike Vuolo investigate.

Visit Lexicon Valley. A Booksmart Studios Production. Episode 295: "Loose as a Goose." With Bob Garfield and Mike Vuolo. Edited and produced by Mike Vuolo. Produced by Livia Bloom Ingram. All rights reserved.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Loose as a Goose

John McWhorter on language change — from the meaning of wit to the pronunciation of automobile. Plus, a defense of redundancy!
Visit <a href="https://booksmartstudios.com/lexiconvalley%E2%81%A0">⁠⁠Lexicon Valley⁠⁠</a>. A Booksmart Studios production. Episode 294: "The Sound of a Car Backshifting." With John McWhorter. Produced and edited by Mike Vuolo. All rights reserved. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

<description>John McWhorter on language change — from the meaning of wit to the pronunciation of automobile. Plus, a defense of redundancy!

Visit ⁠⁠Lexicon Valley⁠⁠. A Booksmart Studios production. Episode 294: "The Sound of a Car Backshifting." With John McWhorter. Produced and edited by Mike Vuolo. All rights reserved.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices</description>

Listen to the way people in old radio and film pronounced "automobile."

John McWhorter on language change — from the meaning of wit to the pronunciation of automobile. Plus, a defense of redundancy!

Visit ⁠⁠Lexicon Valley⁠⁠. A Booksmart Studios production. Episode 294: "The Sound of a Car Backshifting." With John McWhorter. Produced and edited by Mike Vuolo. All rights reserved.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Sound of a Car Backshifting

<a href="https://booksmartstudios.com/lexiconvalley">⁠⁠</a>Getting new words into the dictionary is a rigorous, time consuming process — with no guarantee of success.
<a href="https://booksmartstudios.com/lexiconvalley">Visit Lexicon Valley⁠⁠⁠</a>. A Booksmart Studios production. Episode 293: "How Do Words Get into the Dictionary?" With Stefan Fatsis and Bob Garfield. Edited and produced by Mike Vuolo. Produced by Livia Bloom Ingram. All rights reserved. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

<description>⁠⁠Getting new words into the dictionary is a rigorous, time consuming process — with no guarantee of success.

Visit Lexicon Valley⁠⁠⁠. A Booksmart Studios production. Episode 293: "How Do Words Get into the Dictionary?" With Stefan Fatsis and Bob Garfield. Edited and produced by Mike Vuolo. Produced by Livia Bloom Ingram. All rights reserved.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices</description>

Humans are still doing the difficult work of defining words, for now.

⁠⁠Getting new words into the dictionary is a rigorous, time consuming process — with no guarantee of success.

Visit Lexicon Valley⁠⁠⁠. A Booksmart Studios production. Episode 293: "How Do Words Get into the Dictionary?" With Stefan Fatsis and Bob Garfield. Edited and produced by Mike Vuolo. Produced by Livia Bloom Ingram. All rights reserved.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

How Do Words Get into the Dictionary?

"Unabridged" author Stefan Fatsis on the fastidious practice of lexicography and the heiress who amassed the largest collection of dictionaries in history.
<a href="https://booksmartstudios.com/lexiconvalley">⁠⁠Visit Lexicon Valley⁠⁠</a>. A Booksmart Studios production. Episode 292: "Look It Up! The Story of the Dictionary." With Stefan Fatsis and Bob Garfield. Edited and produced by Mike Vuolo. Produced by Livia Bloom Ingram. All rights reserved. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

<description>"Unabridged" author Stefan Fatsis on the fastidious practice of lexicography and the heiress who amassed the largest collection of dictionaries in history.

⁠⁠Visit Lexicon Valley⁠⁠. A Booksmart Studios production. Episode 292: "Look It Up! The Story of the Dictionary." With Stefan Fatsis and Bob Garfield. Edited and produced by Mike Vuolo. Produced by Livia Bloom Ingram. All rights reserved.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices</description>

The greatest book ever written is a work in progress.

"Unabridged" author Stefan Fatsis on the fastidious practice of lexicography and the heiress who amassed the largest collection of dictionaries in history.

⁠⁠Visit Lexicon Valley⁠⁠. A Booksmart Studios production. Episode 292: "Look It Up! The Story of the Dictionary." With Stefan Fatsis and Bob Garfield. Edited and produced by Mike Vuolo. Produced by Livia Bloom Ingram. All rights reserved.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Look It Up! The Story of the Dictionary.

Like 'analog watch' and 'snail mail,' 'openly racist' is a retronym — John McWhorter and Mike Vuolo explain.
 
<a href="https://booksmartstudios.com/lexiconvalley">⁠Visit Lexicon Valley⁠</a>. A Booksmart Studios production. Episode 291: "Open Season for Racists." With John McWhorter and Mike Vuolo. Edited and produced by Mike Vuolo. All rights reserved. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit <a href="https://megaphone.fm/adchoices">megaphone.fm/adchoices</a>

<description>Like 'analog watch' and 'snail mail,' 'openly racist' is a retronym — John McWhorter and Mike Vuolo explain.



⁠Visit Lexicon Valley⁠. A Booksmart Studios production. Episode 291: "Open Season for Racists." With John McWhorter and Mike Vuolo. Edited and produced by Mike Vuolo. All rights reserved. 
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices</description>

John McWhorter and Mike Vuolo on the subtleties of "openly racist."

Like 'analog watch' and 'snail mail,' 'openly racist' is a retronym — John McWhorter and Mike Vuolo explain.



⁠Visit Lexicon Valley⁠. A Booksmart Studios production. Episode 291: "Open Season for Racists." With John McWhorter and Mike Vuolo. Edited and produced by Mike Vuolo. All rights reserved. 
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Open Season for Racists

A podcast about language, with hosts Mike Vuolo, Bob Garfield and John McWhorter.

Lexicon Valley

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