Cultural English

Topics: Classic TV Shows – The Addams Family; The Hoover Dam; “Silence is only frightening to people who are compulsively verbalizing.”; to blow (something) apart; pronouncing “man” and “men”

Topics: Famous Americans – Eli Whitney; The Ziegfeld Follies; ROFL, straight outta, and meme; shack versus shed; to take advantage of versus to seize

Topics: American Authors – Kurt Vonnegut; Famous Songs – “When You Wish Upon a Star”; to knock up versus to knock down versus to knock over versus to knock off; new versus brand new; give and take

Topics: Classic TV & Movies – Mission: Impossible; Famous Americans – Alfred Stieglitz; satisfactory versus satisfying; damaged goods and majorly unfair

Topics:  The Pennsylvania Mutiny of 1783 and the creation of the District of Columbia; The Hollywood Sign; next versus upcoming versus future; critical situation versus critical position; steaming

Topics: American Authors – James Baldwin; Famous Songs – “High Hopes”; homeless versus destitute; odd versus odds; “I'm not a has-been. I am a will-be.”

Topics: Famous Americans – Stephen F. Austin; Classic TV – M*A*S*H; disability versus handicap versus impairment; recourse versus resort; to fly in the face of (something)

Topics: Movies – The King and I; The Women Airforce Service Pilots; nation versus sovereign versus kingdom; to obstruct versus to hinder; fire and brimstone

Topics: American Authors – Philip K. Dick; on purpose versus deliberately versus intentionally; moderately versus sparingly; understatement of the century

Topics: Famous Americans – Marian Anderson; in a heartbeat versus in a second versus in a moment; old versus stale

Topics: The John Peter Zenger Trial; tone versus hue versus tint versus shade; wherewithal; pronouncing saw, sew, sow, and sue

Topics: Traditional Gospel Music and Thomas A. Dorsey; cliché versus stereotype; chicken versus hen; to nail it

Topics:  Andersonville Prison; garbage versus litter versus trash versus rubbish; downtime; pronouncing eight, height, and weight

Topics: Famous Americans – Bob Hope; severe versus serious; bill versus check; pronouncing words with the silent “b”

Topics: American Authors – Truman Capote; to be understaffed versus to be stretched thin versus to be on the brink of; don’t mention it versus you’re welcome versus my pleasure; bees knees

Topics: Famous Americans – Malcolm X; to pack/packing versus to box/boxing versus to wrap/wrapping; rational versus reasonable; to insinuateTopics: Famous Americans – Malcolm X; to pack/packing versus to box/boxing versus to wrap/wrapping; rational versus reasonable; to insinuate

Topics: The Mayflower and the Mayflower Compact; to encompass versus to comprise; edge versus margin; do me right

Topics: The Women Airforce Service Pilots; technically versus typically versus basically; apology versus apologies; to approve versus to approve of

Topics: Famous Americans – Kenny Rogers; Elements of Style; over time; pronouncing “rushing” versus “Russian”

Topics: The Amana Colonies; resolution versus promise; fate versus destiny; saying “oh” or “zero” when reading numbers aloud

Famous Americans – Esther Williams; latest versus recent versus current; to put (something) on (one’s) account; sneak peek

Topics: American Authors – Henry Wadsworth Longfellow; area versus zone versus region; to come along; to burn bridges

Topics: The Righteous Brothers – “You’ve Got That Loving Feeling” and “Unchanged Melody;” ingrate, malcontent, and ungrateful; to allow versus to authorize; pronouncing morning versus mourning

Topics: The Black Loyalists of the American Revolution; alert versus alarm versus warning; haze versus mist; pronouncing “advantage” and other “nt” words

Topics: National Lampoon; contest versus competition versus match versus game; (in the) meantime versus meanwhile

Topics: Popular Idioms – “Dutch courage,” “Dutch treat/To go dutch,” and “Dutch uncle”; antique versus vintage; necessary versus needed; to make (one’s) case

Topics: The Bald Eagle and the Great Seal of the United States; to sleep in versus to oversleep; to be (once, twice, etc.) removed; wantonness

Topics: Popular Idioms – “Mexican Standoff” and “Young Turks”; paranormal versus abnormal; tough, tuff, and tough guy; even

Topics: A Fraudulent Auction; term versus semester; to go to church/mosque versus to go to the church/mosque; to coin a phrase

Topics: Questions Answered: The song “Cat’s and the Cradle”; hardly versus rarely; you’re reaching and that’s a stretch; to fix on versus to fixate on; hilarious versus ridiculous, pronouncing death and deaf

Topics: Questions Answered: Whose Line is it Anyway?, to shiver versus to tremble versus to quiver; something versus something else; to bite the bullet; to blow (something) apart; to shy (away) from

Topics: Questions Answered:  To head-butt a curb, to thin the herd, and to sound like a blue chip; to mock versus to jeer versus to taunt versus to deride; background versus backdrop; to turn out to be; to be on fire; pronouncing “Is he?” and “Is she?”

Topics: Questions Answered:  Folk beliefs versus omens versus signs; crook, to lurk, prey, and gullible; corrupt and corrupted; to walk (someone) through (something); rough ride; is all