Etymology
Is ‘Chinatown’ offensive?
I’ve heard people using back-to-back housing to mean terraces separated by back yards. But strictly, back-to-back houses are built against…
Does ‘tummy’ turn your stomach?
‘How old does he think you are?’ asked my husband when I told him my GP had asked me if…
Do you ‘cock a snook’ – or snoot?
‘This is interesting, darling,’ my husband called out from beside his whisky while I was doing the washing-up. The interesting…
The meaning of ‘moot’? It’s debatable
In Florence there was a stone on which Dante sat in the evenings, pondering and talking to acquaintances. One asked…
What does ‘maidan’ have to do with cricket?
Freddie Flintoff recently called the Maidan ‘the home of cricket’. For supporters of Ukraine’s independence, the Maidan saw continual demonstrations…
When did monkeypox become ‘mpox’?
Writing about monkeypox in The Spectator in May 2022, Douglas Murray repeated a formula he had put forward in 2020,…
What’s the right way to voyage?
My husband has ordered a copy of Craig Brown’s new book, out next week, a bit late for my birthday.…
Immateriality – or irrelevance?
In The Importance of Being Earnest Jack Worthing was given his surname by Mr Thomas Cardew, who happened to have…
What is ‘thuggery’?
The word that Sir Keir Starmer, the Prime Minister, chose to describe the action of rioters was more interesting than…
The summer of Brat
The singer Charli XCX (or ‘Ninety Ten’ as my husband insists on pronouncing it) has endorsed Kamala Harris, in a…
The hidden depths of ‘deep dive’
My husband has taken to crying out or braying ‘Haar, ha!’ at the wireless whenever he hears something particularly foolish,…
Is Donald Trump a ‘badass’?
Logan Paul, a wrestler with 23 million YouTube subscribers, called Donald Trump’s immediate reaction to his shooting ‘the most badass…
Can a home really be forever?
Graham Norton’s latest novel ‘blends dark humour and emotional weight with ease’, says the Radio Times. That may well be,…
Can politicians really pivot?
‘That’ll be the old pivot again,’ said Amol Rajan on Today last week. He was interviewing Pat McFadden, who is…
Who came up with the analogy of carrying a Ming vase?
‘Evelyn Waugh,’ said my husband when I asked who came up with the analogy of carrying a Ming vase. He…
How to decode adspeak
The National Galleries of Scotland is singular. In its public pronouncements its pronouns are it and its. Fair enough. Though…
Being asked to ‘bear with’ is unbearable
‘Bear with me,’ said my husband on the phone and then let out a loud roar. It was intended to…
