Mystery Drawer (Rebroadcast) - 15 November 2021

<p>Amid court-ordered busing in the 1970s, a middle-school teacher tried to distract her nervous students on the first day of class with this strange assignment: find a monarch caterpillar. The result? A memorable lesson in the miracle of metamorphosis. Plus, the story behind the slang expression Word!, meaning "Believe me!" The original version involved the idea that a person's word was their bond. And the expression Empty wagons make the most noise suggests that the person who boasts the loudest may actually be the least knowledgeable. It's a phrase that's had many versions over the centuries -- including one that goes all the way back to ancient Rome! All that, and nebby, beat-feeting, red-headed stepchild, corotole, undermine, fankle, and a wacky puzzle about Greek names.</p> <p>Read full show notes, hear hundreds of free episodes, send your thoughts and questions, and learn more on the <em>A Way with Words</em> website: <a href= "https://waywordradio.org/contact">https://waywordradio.org/contact</a>. Be a part of the show: call <a href="tel:+18779299673">1 (877) 929-9673</a> toll-free in the United States and Canada; worldwide, call or text/SMS <a href="tel:+16198004443">+1 (619) 800-4443</a>. Email <a href= "mailto:words@waywordradio.org">words@waywordradio.org</a>. Twitter <a href="https://twitter.com/wayword">@wayword</a>. Copyright Wayword, Inc., a 501(c)(3) corporation.</p>