America's Secret Slang

Season 1

2013 · 6 episodes · 3h 0m in all

Episodes

1. 1

   1. Guns, Booze, and Politics

   14 Apr 2013 · 30 min

   Politics is full of odd phrases like "pork barrel projects," "slush funds," and "lame ducks" -- all of which had practical origins and morphed to mean what they do today.

2. 2

   2. Them's Fighting Words

   14 Apr 2013 · 30 min

   Have you ever wondered why someone who can't get it together is called a "basket case"? Or where the term "Yankee" came from? And why do we say someone "bought the farm" when they die?

3. 3

   3. Y'all Speak Country

   21 Apr 2013 · 30 min

   The American South has given us words like "y'all" and "rednecks" as well as dozens of colorful phrases like "fly off the handle," "having an axe to grind," and "barking up the wrong tree." But what are the origins of these expressions and why has one group of people contributed so much to the American language?

4. 4

   4. West Word, Ho!

   28 Apr 2013 · 30 min

   Expressions from "riffraff" to "betting your bottom dollar", "passing the buck," "acid test" and even "heard it through the grapevine" all come from America's frontier days. But have you ever wondered why these phrases were first used and what they mean today?

5. 5

   5. Coming to America

   5 May 2013 · 30 min

   Ever wonder why American cowboys say "'git along little doggies" when they're talking about herding cattle? Or why a losing wrestler "cries uncle?" And why do we say "ouch" when we stub a toe?

6. 6

   6. Talking Turkey

   12 May 2013 · 30 min

   Americans have always loved to eat and expressions relating to food--from New York's "big apple" to "wake up and smell the coffee" --pepper our everyday speech. But where did they all come from?