Amid the recent inauguration news, I kept hearing the word “rostrum.” “As he approaches the rostrum tomorrow…”“Donald Trump began his...

With colleges dropping the SAT left and right — and the recent announcement that they’re dropping the essay and subject tests — it’s normal to feel a reluctant pang of sympathy for a dying rite of passage. Here’s the thing, though: The College Board (the organization that runs the SAT) is stronger than ever. Most people don’t know that the AP program is also managed by The College Board, so while people celebrate the end of a standardized test…we’re unwittingly letting them

Imagine not knowing how to say you’re tired. It wouldn’t make sense, right? And yet there’s an emotion that most of us experience all the time..that we awkwardly don’t name. If you don’t know the word “schadenfreude,” you’re not alone. In fact, its history is full of people who didn’t want to bring it into the English language. SCHADENFREUDE IS WHEN YOU’RE INTERESTED IN, OR HAPPY ABOUT, THE MISFORTUNE OF OTHERS. In more practical terms, it’s when you laugh at a video of some

You may already know that what we in the U.S. call “soccer,” most of the rest of the world refers to as “football.” But do you know why we call it soccer when almost no one else does? Is it just some cowboy American thing? A refusal to go with the flow? The story behind the soccer vs. football debate is fascinating, and I share it in episode 65 of the Vocabbett podcast! You can listen on your favorite player, or hit play below! Referenced in this episode: ‘The English Game’ o

If you’re a fan of Greek history, you’re probably familiar with the story of Theseus and the minotaur. But did you know that the word...

The WORD, get it? Haha, wordplay. You tend to hear the word “anecdote” in two contexts these days. Either it’s a fancy stand-in for “story,” or it’s a disparaging adjective, as in, “you only have anecdotal evidence.” But did you know the root of the word “anecdote” is far more salacious? It goes back to the juiciest tell-all novel of the Byzantine empire, when a respected historian basically published the “Gossip Girl” of Justinian’s court. On the sly, Procopius documented al

Blatherskite – “A person who talks at great length without saying much of sense.” Basically, a blatherer. What a great word. Definitely...

Have you ever looked at a calendar and thought, "Well that makes no sense"? October starts with “oct,” but it’s not the 8th month....