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Mental Floss

Language - Page 58 of 87

Whoever started 'from scratch’ didn’t actually do it in the kitchen—and ‘scratch’ has nothing to do with clawing ingredients together with your bare hands.
Ellen Gutoskey|
Kate Winslet's Philadelphia accent in 'Mare of Easttown' could be a linguistic time capsule in a couple of decades.
Michele Debczak|
From 'asportation' to 'nicknackatory' to 'yex,' these old, delightfully unusual words are ones you'll want to use regularly.
Erin McCarthy|
At 85 letters, New Zealand's Taumatawhakatangihangakoauauotamateapokaiwhenuakitanatah is the world's longest place name.
Jane Alexander|
What does branding or spanking have to do with whether something is factory-new or not? We investigate.
Jake Rossen|
This very German word became embedded in the American vernacular—but not before German politicians tried to ban kindergarten entirely.
Jake Rossen|
Understanding the difference between ‘immigrate’ and ‘emigrate’ requires a fun little dive into the world of Latin prefixes.
Ellen Gutoskey|
When Charles Boycott tried to evict struggling Irish farmers during a famine, they ran him right out of Ireland.
Ellen Gutoskey|
Apple AirTags will help you keep track of your stuff, but they won’t help you convey how funny you find the word ‘boob.’
Ellen Gutoskey|
Southpaws are most often talked about in baseball and boxing. But which sport (if either) coined the term?
Ellen Gutoskey|
The origins of phrases aren’t always very clear, but this one is—and it all started with carnival barkers.
Ellen Gutoskey|
Step into a Target or Walgreens and you might be labeled a 'guest.' The practice probably started for a very Goofy reason.
Jake Rossen|
‘Idaho’ is often said to mean "gem of the mountains," but the guy who suggested it might’ve just made it up.
Ellen Gutoskey|
If you’ve been spelling ‘restaurateur’ with an ‘n’ for your entire life, don't feel bad. But here’s why you’re wrong.
Ellen Gutoskey|
From 'nose sweater' to 'face condom,' here are some of the colorful terms Germans are coining to talk about life during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Michele Debczak|
The '90s were da bomb—a decade of great music, spectacular TV, and artful language use. Just look at the following 25 bits of slang popular in the '90s that were all that (and a bag of chips).
Keith Johnston|
“Cut to the chase” is a slightly friendlier way of telling someone to get to the point, but old Hollywood filmmakers meant it literally.
Ellen Gutoskey|
Empathy’s definition originally described the relationship between humans and objects. Now, it’s much less straightforward.
Ellen Gutoskey|
Sometimes the dreadful things we must suffer can seem a little less grim when they have the sweet ring, nay—the dulcet tones of euphonious polysyllabic Latin appellations.
Keith Johnston|
White collar jobs are purportedly better paying and more respectable than blue collar jobs—here’s how that came to be.
Ellen Gutoskey|
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