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truthiness (paid)

  • Dave Wilton

Dave Wilton

14 Mar 2025 • 3 min read
Still image of Stephen Colbert sitting behind a desk with a Chyron that reads, “The Wørd: Truthiness”

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Batik-dyed flag bearing the words “Eyot 420” and a cannabis leaf
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four-twenty / 420 (paid)

11 Feb 2026 4 min read
Record label of the single “Rapper’s Delight” by Sugar Hill Gang, 1979

rap

11 February 2026 Rap has four broad senses, all stemming from the first: a blow or strike; a criminal charge; an utterance or conversation; and a musical genre. The sense of rap meaning a blow or strike is probably echoic in origin. Much like tap and clap, it represents the
11 Feb 2026 10 min read
Man doffing his coat as if to fight; a newspaper telling of German atrocities at his feet; caption: “Tell it to the marines”

tell that to the marines

9 February 2026 The origin of the phrase tell that to the marines is exactly what you might think it to be, an expression originally used by sailors that implies their shipmates in the marines are gullible. The earliest example of the phrase that I’m aware of is in
09 Feb 2026 2 min read
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