Claim OwnershipWords Unravelled with RobWords and Jess Zafarris
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© Rob Watts & Jess Zafarris
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Jess Zafarris and Rob Watts unravel the stories behind everyday words.
Want to watch our episodes too? Subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8R3ZnESMdsuTevq4ib9CvA
Want to watch our episodes too? Subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8R3ZnESMdsuTevq4ib9CvA
57 Episodes
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We're taking a world tour of word origins. In this episode, Jess and Rob discuss how a multitude of countries got their names.
🇺🇸 Where was the original "America"?
🇬🇧 Why is Britain called "Great"?
🇨🇦 What does "Canada" mean?
🇩🇪 Why do the Germans call themselves "Dutch"?
These questions answered – and many more – in another worldly wise episode of Words Unravelled.
🌐 LINKS 🌐
Rob's UK country names video: https://youtu.be/aXAjMlTO7Dc?si=DpZ8oZlH8h6iVX0O
Rob's European countries video: https://youtu.be/2Pcv2ySMi40?si=4YQMmeUL4FcPBOn7
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WATCH THIS EPISODE: https://youtu.be/HJVrBYFf4Ps
BREAKING: Rob and Jess uncover news clichés and weird journalistic words.
📺 Why do TV news anchors talk in that strange way?
🗞️ Why do newspaper journalists spell lead as "lede"?
🎤 Why do journalists use clichés like "on the rise"?
🐊 What is a "knobbly monster"?
These questions answered – and many more – in another hot-off-the-press episode of Words Unravelled.
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1Samuel Johnson's 1755 dictionary was one heck of an achievement. But it is also far from perfect. In this episode, Jess and Rob discuss some of the more amusing entries within its pages, and even the words that landed dear Samuel in hot water. Enjoy this cover-to-cover exploration of English's most important dictionary and the extraordinary man who wrote it.
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📘 JESS'S BOOK 📘
Bookshop . org: tinyurl.com/UselessEty
Amazon: tinyurl.com/UselessEtyAZ
B&N: tinyurl.com/UselessEtyBN
WATCH THIS EPISODE: https://youtu.be/GW0em6wW15A
Welcome aboard flight WU321 bound for Etymology Island. In this episode, Rob and Jess take to the skies and soar through the word origins of a multitude of aviation terms.
✈️ Is it an 'airplane' or an 'aeroplane'?
🐓 Why do pilots sit in a 'cockpit'?
🛩️ Why is English the language of aviation?
🔠 How did the NATO alphabet come to be?
These questions answered – and many more – in a high-flying episode of Words Unravelled charting the etymology of flight.
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In for a penny, in for a pound: Rob and Jess discuss money word origins in this episode of Words Unravelled.
💰 Where did the dollar sign come from?
💷 What is the British currency a pound of?
🤑 Which goddess is all money named after?
These questions answered – and many more – in another financially sound episode of Words Unravelled.
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The British Podcast Awards listeners' choice award: https://www.britishpodcastawards.com/...
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Jess and Rob have got their heads in the clouds, exploring the origins of our words for weather.
☄️ Why don't meteorologists deal with meteors?
☁️ How are we using the wrong word for 'cloud'?
☔️ What was the original 'raincheck'?
🤬 Why does Jess hate the word 'petrichor'?
These questions answered, and many more, in this etymological meteorological episode of Words Unravelled.
🌐 LINKS 🌐
Our games video (re: chess): https://youtu.be/vBa8CIltJ24?si=BxcDAYTk7yLYq5ja
Our Christmas video (re: reindeer): https://youtu.be/9A0hAxeFyo4?si=ECL0SFZJUcKUo50L
Rob's video about ugly and beautiful words: https://youtu.be/hh5yEKPNEtM?si=LMvCxuv7KvH4E23T
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Is it "on accident" or "by accident"? Should "red, white, and blue" have that second comma? Is "10 items or less" okay? Jess and Rob are joined by the internet's Grammar Girl, Mignon Fogarty, to examine some common grammatical myths and mistakes.
🥳 Is it wrong to use "fun" as an adjective?
🏎️ Is "drive SLOW" bad grammar? (or just a flat adverb?)
🥃 Why does "tonic and gin" sound weird?
These questions answered, as well as many more, on Words Unravelled.
Mignon's podcast: https://www.quickanddirtytips.com/grammar-girl/
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Bienvenue dans cet épisode de "Mot Décortiqué"! Rob and Jess are exploring the enormous influence French has had on the English language.
📊What proportion of English words are French?
🥩Why do our meats have French names?
🇫🇷Which words have we borrowed from French twice?
These questions answered and many, many more in another merveilleux, fabuleux Words Unravelled.
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Jess and Rob present a brief history of time words in an episode filled with chronological etymology.
⌚️ How did "seconds" get their name?
🕰️ What does "clock" literally mean?
🇫🇷 How did France's decimal calendar work?
These questions answered – and so many more – in this timely episode of Words Unravelled.
Our mythology episode: https://youtu.be/b8s2uxWrMhQ?si=G--tQQwAj9mKHk-S
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Lights, camera, action! Rob and Jess are discussing movie and TV terms in this filmic episode of Words Unravelled.
🎥 Why do Brits call movies "films"?
🤷🏼♂️ Why has Allen Smithee directed so many terrible movies?
🙀 Why is there a "dead cat" on every Hollywood set?
These questions answered, and many more, in this episode crammed with film and television etymology.
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Time for some entomology etymology! Rob and Jess will have you in bits as they explore the literal meaning of "insect" and all manner of other term for creepy crawly.
🕷️ Why do spiders spin "cobwebs"?
🦋 Was a butterfly ever a "flutterby"?
🐞 Which is older, "ladybug" or "ladybird"?
These questions answered, and many more, a critter-crammed episode of Words Unravelled.
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Holy heck! Rob and Jess are back with an episode of biblical proportions. Join them as they get to the gospel truth about the origins of religious words.
⛪️ What was kept in the very first chapel?
🦛 Which animal was the original behemoth?
🗝️ Where does the word "conclave" come from?
These questions answered – and many more – in another Words Unravelled.
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Jess and Rob are unravelling the origins of our words for fabric and clothing in this highly fashionable episode of Words Unravelled.
🩲 Why do 'pants' mean different things in the UK and US?
👖 Which city are your jeans named after?
🪶 What's flappy about a 'flapper girl'?
✈️ Is 'nylon' really named after New York and London?
These questions answered, and many more, in our most unravelly episode of Words Unravelled.
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It's time to hit the road with Rob and Jess as they journey through the origins of words from road and rail.
🚃 Why do Brits say "transport" and Americans "transportation"?
🚊 What's the difference between a train and a locomotive?
🚙 How do you actually pronounce Hyundai?
These questions answered – and many more – in this transport[ation] special of Words Unravelled.
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Rob and Jess "pull out all the stops" in this episode explaining idiom origins.
✈️ Why do we say "balls to the wall" and "push the envelope"?
🐘 What's so useless about a "white elephant"?
👕 Where were the original "whole nine yards"?
These questions answered and many more in this common sayings special of Words Unravelled.
Here's our other idioms episode: https://pod.fo/e/2a54ba
And the video version of this one: https://youtu.be/ca3lz3dXgW8
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Let's explore British English and American English. In another transatlantic war of words, Rob (a Brit) and Jess (an American) debate the differing words for the same things either side of the pond.
For our new Channel Memberships click "Join" just below the video.
Our previous 🇺🇸 vs. 🇬🇧 episode
📺 https://youtu.be/o6KlBd7TPFI?si=EHmBIMV3PatoSQi9
🔊 https://pod.fo/e/240f60
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🎥 Watch this episode: https://youtu.be/kf6zkx3Zg_4
We're back for a new 🇬🇧series/🇺🇸season of Words Unravelled. In this episode, transatlantic word nerds Rob and Jess tackle the truth and lies surrounding Williams Shakespeare.
✍️ Did the Bard really invent 1,700 words?
🤬 Which insults did Willy give us?
🎭 Could he actually have written all of those plays?
These questions answered and many more, just As You Like It.
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There's fightin' talk in this episode of Words Unravelled, in which Jess and Rob discuss words of warcraft.
🔫 Which woman are all guns named after?
🪖 Where does the word "war" come from?
👮 Is lieutenant pronounced loo-tenant or lef-tenant?
These questions answered – and many more – in this military etymology special of Words Unravelled.
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In this printing special of Words Unravelled, Jess proves herself a font of knowledge on names for typefaces and Rob makes a bit impression with the history of the printing press.
🆎 What's the difference between a font and a typeface?
😈 Who was the printer's devil?
📖 How did the printing press ruin English spelling?
These questions answered — and many more — in this cliché-free episode of Words Unravelled.
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It's here: the much-requested swearing episode of Words Unravelled. Join Rob and Jess as they explore the origins of all manner of profanity.
#️⃣ Where did the F word come from?
📍 Which place names originally contained swear words?
📺 What are the worst words you can say on TV?
These questions answered, and many more, in this NSFW edition of Words Unravelled.
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There is no question in my mind that the on accident/by accident influence had to have been "Sesame Street".
What about someone who is on a fast, like Ramadan or Lent?
Buckle up, pun lovers! Today, we’re taking a joyride through the humorous highway of driving puns. Fasten your seatbelts; it’s going to be a punny ride. https://punfinity.com/driving-puns/
brilliant, grew up with British English, but think the is a lot that the Septics get right