Ah, the dreaded lurgy! That charmingly British term for when you’re not quite sure if you’re dying or just feeling so rubbish that you’d rather not risk the gamble. And to think it all started with The Goon Show, as if Spike Milligan and Eric Sykes decided the world needed …
Ah, Pluto—the celestial underdog, god of the underworld, and, curiously, also the god of wealth. It’s like the universe’s way of saying, “Money won’t make you happy, but it will definitely drag you into the depths.” So fitting that we get words like plutocracy (rule by the rich), plutocrats (rich …
Today marks the 77th anniversary of the Kenneth Arnold UFO sighting—a milestone not only for UFO enthusiasts but also for lexicographers everywhere, as it gave the English language two fascinating new terms: flying saucer and pelicanist. For those unfamiliar, Kenneth Arnold was a businessman and aviator who, in 1947, claimed …
