Lawyer and friend of the show Andrew Arsht drops by to discuss three idioms from the legal world. In a wide-ranging conversation, he explains to us how pleading the fifth is a bit more complicated than it looks in Law and Order, how in Britain

M04: The Bride's Mouthwash, or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Corporatism

Oct 3rd, 2021 20m 17s

Idioms from corporate advertising are everywhere. In this episode we take a virtual walk through Times Square and look at four prominent idioms that surprisingly originated from advertising.

E05: Homeland Strawberry Other Land Blueberry (Finnish)

Jul 24th, 2021 42m 43s

Iiris Andre joins the idiots for an in-depth look at a selection of Finnish idioms. We discuss why some lands are strawberries and some lands are blueberries, what happens when you get your skis crossed, and the best place for sunbathing in all

M03: The Idiots' Gambit

Jun 20th, 2021 26m 13s

Our third mini-episode is all about a common passion: the game of chess. Ethan and Marcello challenge each in a war over the board while getting into many idiots related to the world of chess.Join us to learn more about this fascinating game.

E04: A Boot Move (American English)

Jun 2nd, 2021 36m 39s

Andy Hoffmann, a first lieutenant with the United States Marine Corp, joins the Idiots (Marcello and Ethan) for a behind-the-scenes look at military idioms and language.From 'act like a boot' to 'blue falcon', we explore the idioms used on a mi

M02: The Mendoza Line

Apr 28th, 2021 32m 49s

Why does something crazy come "out of left field"? And what does 70s baseball player Mario Mendoza have to do with mediocrity? We answer these questions and many more in our latest mini episode: Based on Baseball. We also look at baseball-orien

E03: Go Carpathian Hare (Latin and ancient Greek)

Mar 24th, 2021 35m 50s

In our latest episode, we're joined by Federico Tanozzi, who introduces us to our new favorite idiom: The Carpathian Hare! We also discuss the millenia-old traditions of idioms in Ancient Greek epic poems.We're introduced to Aristotle's obsessi

M01: Idioms from ancient Greece

Mar 8th, 2021 20m 41s

Our first mini-episode is all about ancient Greece 🏛 Discover the origin of idioms such as Achilles' heel, the Gordian Knot and Midas touch.

E02: Chickpeas and Buffalos (Hindi)

Feb 21st, 2021 32m 21s

In this episode, our guest Spriha Dhanuka leads us through three sets of contradictory proverbs. We explore the historical origins of these proverbs in Indian mystic poetry and discuss what they reveal about modern Indian culture as well as the