discalced
adj. without shoes
Language
Excuse Me?
The Czech sentence Strč prst skrz krk (“stick finger through throat”) has no vowels — which makes it a notoriously difficult tongue-twister.
It’s so difficult, in fact, that Czechs challenge each other to say it — as a test for sobriety.
In a Word
ucalegon
n. a neighbor whose house is on fire
Limerick
There was a young lady named Susie
Whose surname said she was a floozie.
Cathouse was the name;
It caused her such shame
She chose to pronounce it Cathouse.
In a Word
jerque
v. to search for smuggled goods
Coincidenza
There are 3 letters in the Italian word for 6, sei.
There are 4 letters in the Italian word for 8, otto.
There are 5 letters in the Italian word for 10, dieci.
There are 6 letters in the Italian word for 12, dodici.
Finger Fumblers
If you don’t speak, you can’t misspeak, right? Not so: American Sign Language has the equivalent of tongue twisters, known as finger fumblers.
One example is “good blood, bad blood” — which is hard to say in speech or sign.
Black Friday
Famous people born on Friday the 13th:
- Don Adams
- Samuel Beckett
- Steve Buscemi
- Fidel Castro
- Julia Louis-Dreyfus
- Thomas Jefferson
- Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen
- Georges Simenon
The fear of this date is called paraskavedekatriaphobia.
tfeL to thgiR
Leonardo da Vinci recorded most of his personal notes in mirror writing. Maybe he wanted to hide his ideas from the Church … or maybe, being left-handed, he didn’t want to smudge the ink.
Thanks for Nothing
Gordon Macdonald was the last British governor of Newfoundland. Despite the island’s fiercely independent nature, he openly campaigned for it to become part of Canada. In 1949 he succeeded, and two days before he returned to England, the Evening Telegram published a congratulatory poem:
The prayers of countless thousands sent
Heavenwards to speed thy safe return,
Ennobled as thou art with duty well performed,
Bringing peace, security and joy
Among the peoples of this New Found Land.
So saddened and depressed until your presence
Taught us discern and help decide what’s best for
All on whom fortune had not smiled.
Remember if you will the kindness and the love
Devotion and the respect that we the people have for Thee
— Farewell!
It was several weeks before the editors noticed it was an acrostic — read the first letter of each line.