The concept of a villain conjures up an evil tax collector, a pompous dictator, or a Snidely Whiplash type. While the general antagonists in western culture that face off against the heroes have … [Read more...] about Words You Don’t Know: Villain
Words You Don't Know
Words You Don’t Know: Ell
Before international standardization boards regulated everything from street signs to keyboards, individual cultures and cities had to regulate things themselves. For specific industries, the number … [Read more...] about Words You Don’t Know: Ell
Words You Don’t Know: Robot
Robots are ubiquitous in science fiction. There’s the robots with a personality and desires of their own like Bender from Futurama or Data from Star Trek. There’s the subservient robots that dot the … [Read more...] about Words You Don’t Know: Robot
Words You Don’t Know: Misunderestimated
Everyone knows about the 1960 presidential debate between John F. Kennedy and current Vice President Richard Nixon. Onscreen for the first time, the debate brought characters out of the impersonal … [Read more...] about Words You Don’t Know: Misunderestimated
Words You Don’t Know: Cartouche
Less than ten years after the beginning of the War of the First Coalition, self-proclaimed Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte led France abroad to the shores of Northern Egypt to kick off the aptly named War … [Read more...] about Words You Don’t Know: Cartouche
Words You Don’t Know: Sockdologizing
Have you ever been nagged? Has someone ever gotten your goat? Ever need someone to step off? You know the feeling of being sockdologized. At least, probably. We don’t exactly know for sure the true … [Read more...] about Words You Don’t Know: Sockdologizing