Say What

If you think a Troll is an ogre from northern European mythology, a beast under the bridge, you'd be missing half the story. It's about so much more. …

War, pandemics, politics, soap, cigarettes – it’s all propaganda. Whether it’s coming from the left or the right, your party or the opposition, coke …

To investigate the word "Hoax", we need to talk about magicians and the Catholic liturgy.

This episode is about a fake word, in a way. A made up …

How did such a nice word that we use to mean sweet and polite, also come to be an insult for some? Well, today's word, nice, started out as a pretty …

Many years ago, I found a series of videos on YouTube of people making miniature food. Actual food like a burger, the size of a coin, sushi no bigger than a pebble. To make this food, faceless people use working …

When you think of hysteria, what comes to mind? Melancholia, anxiety, frigidity. It’s a problem that can be solved, says Doctor Dalrymple from the …

Resolutions

Each and every year I buy a diary and I make a resolution to use it ALL YEAR. This is my year. I say that every year.

And each and every …

It’s almost Christmas so there’s no better time of the year to have a look at the words we use once a year with abandon.

From Eggnog to Kris Kringle, …

From Taxi Driver to Psycho, Ted Bundy to the kid down the road, the Peeping Tom is both a real life predatory character and box office gold.

But who …

Do you know where the word “left” comes from? Well, in Latin, it’s Sinister, in all of its evil definitions. 

So let’s break it down. How did sinister come to mean left and why is the left sinister? 

Why does my mum …

Just in case you’re wondering, I have a real weak spot for curiosities and curious people – you know, people who behave irrationally, rule breakers …

We’ve heard the word, Catfishing, and doesn’t it feel like it’s been part of the zeitgeist forever? But Catfishing, as it’s used in popular culture, …

What is up with the word Tomboy? Is it even politically correct to say it anymore? Without turning this into a gender studies episode, we’re going to …

Since the 2016 election that gave Donald Trump a platform, not to mention the presidency, the word has been everywhere. But what does it mean? Where does gaslight come from?

We hear a lot about ghosting. You know, it’s …

When you think of quarantine, what comes to mind? Leper colonies of the past? Two weeks to flatten the curve?

A hundred years ago, when leprosy was …

It's the most hashtagged flavour of icecream, the second most expensive spices in the word, and it's much maligned. How did vanilla go from being a …

Hi word nerds and history geeks, you’re tuned into Say What.

I’m Jo Vraca and each episode, I’m going to rub shoulders with the glitterati of …