Word of the Day #38: Truckle

Truckle: to yield out of weakness Most of us know what a trundle bed is.  In case you don’t, a trundle bed is a low bed on wheels.  When not in use trundle beds slide beneath other beds.   Evidently, in some places, trundle beds are truckle beds.  Truckle comes from...

Tip of the Week #254: How to Find a Book

Whenever I look for a book I go through several steps. Since I tend to be rather frugal, I always start with our local library. You can check out audiobooks from your local library using the free Libby app. To use Libby, you need a library card and, of course, the...

Word of the Day #37: Ham

Ever wondered why some cities have ‘ham’ attached to their names? Birmingham, Nottingham, Gotham, Buckingham, and even Hampshire? The Old English word for home or homestead is ‘ham.’  ‘Ham’ is also the source of our English word ‘home.’ As the three little pigs said,...

Word of the Day #36: Donner and Blitzen

A few days ago, one of my students asked where the eight tiny reindeer got their names.  I knew there were some German names in there, but beyond that, I was not sure.  So, I went looking. The reindeer first show up in a poem by Clement C. Moore.  Mr. Moore wrote A...

English is dangerous

I don’t feel like posting a word today. So, here is one of my all-time favorite jokes about the English language. Maybe. I can’t tell if it’s a joke or if it’s true. The Japanese eat very little fat And suffer fewer heart attacks than...