Lexicon Valley

Play along with our new game and guess the correct chronological order of the following phrases: perfect crime, perfect fit, perfect storm and perfect stranger. Visit Lexicon Valley. A Booksmart Studios Production. Episode 298: "The Dating Game, Perfect Edition." With Bob Garfield and Mike Vuolo. Edited and produced by Mike Vuolo. Produced by Livia Bloom Ingram. All rights reserved. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

"Perfect!" is everywhere. On the evolution and ubiquity of a flawless word. Visit Lexicon Valley. A Booksmart Studios Production. Episode 297: "A Perfect Episode." With Bob Garfield and Mike Vuolo. Edited and produced by Mike Vuolo. Produced by Livia Bloom Ingram. All rights reserved. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A deep dive into the curious word 'hornswoggled' and how its meanings shifted over two centuries. They trace early 19th-century uses, 19th-century coercion and obstruction senses, and the 20th-century move toward 'duped.' Pop culture nods include Blazing Saddles and Willy Wonka. Listeners get etymology theories and lively anecdotes about being tricked or hindered.

A linguistic detective story about why “loose as a goose” sounds right. They trace rhyming animal names, historical print uses, and surprising Danish influences. The conversation explores geese behavior, early baseball references, and the phrase’s shifting senses from free to limber to even messy meanings.

A romp through word histories and how meanings shift over time. A look at wit’s original sense of knowledge and its survival in strange compounds. Old recordings reveal how automobile shrank into auto and car. Playful takes on redundancy in language and how extra words can be meaningful or comic.

Stefan Fatsis, journalist and author of Unabridged who tried his hand as a professional lexicographer. He recounts defining words, wrestling with imposter syndrome, and picking entries that reveal cultural shifts. He digs into viral controversies like sheeple, why some coins fail, and how the internet and AI are reshaping dictionaries’ future.

"Unabridged" author Stefan Fatsis on the fastidious practice of lexicography and the heiress who amassed the largest collection of dictionaries in history. ⁠⁠Visit Lexicon Valley⁠⁠. A Booksmart Studios production. Episode 292: "Look It Up! The Story of the Dictionary." With Stefan Fatsis and Bob Garfield. Edited and produced by Mike Vuolo. Produced by Livia Bloom Ingram. All rights reserved. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Like 'analog watch' and 'snail mail,' 'openly racist' is a retronym — John McWhorter and Mike Vuolo explain. ⁠Visit Lexicon Valley⁠. A Booksmart Studios production. Episode 291: "Open Season for Racists." With John McWhorter and Mike Vuolo. Edited and produced by Mike Vuolo. All rights reserved. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A lively look at how 'angle' evolved from a hooked fishing tool into metaphor and surname material. They trace Old English roots, biblical and Shakespearean uses, and why angling captured imaginations. Conversation ranges from anglerfish naming to a 14th century record and a funny family fishing tale.

A lively dive into the surprising history of the word gist. Traces the term from old French cemetery inscriptions to a legal phrase that shifted into everyday 'essence'. Explores a Nigerian English sense meaning gossip and how that shaped podcast names. Ends with playful banter about getting to the point.