BIG QUESTIONS

'Noise' and 'sound' are often used interchangeably—even when they shouldn't be.

The origin of the phrase ‘silver screen’ is less about movies and more about how people watched them in the good old days.

Like so many other phrases, the meaning of ‘pass with flying colors’ has nautical roots.

The conditions for stifling heat are pretty easy to explain, and so is the solution: Keep cool.

The five-pointed star is common in the northeast and has been rumored to represent everything from the Amish to swingers.

While there's a common answer to the number of bones contained within the human body, it's not exactly accurate.

The most populous city on Earth has more residents than the entire state of Texas or the whole continent of Australia.

The white roofs on school buses help keep things cool in more ways than one.

People have been “dropping like flies”—often due to weather—since at least the mid-19th century.

The Gold Star Family license plate has its roots in a custom that began during World War I.

A room temperature stick of butter is easier to spread. But is it safe?

Yes, they’re synonyms. But there’s a little more to the semantic story of ‘recur’ vs. ’reoccur’ than that.