A Way With Words #1. Be There or Be Square 2. bushwacking

A Way with Words (aired on NPR September 1^st, 2024)

Today, I am sharing two fun expressions that were explored on NPR.

1. John in Omaha, Nebraska, wonders about a phrase “be there or be square” that is a playful invitation that encourages someone to attend an event or risk being left out or feeling uncool. In other words, “to be present at an event or activity, or to be excluded if you don't attend.”

The practice of calling a straitlaced person square goes back at least to the 1500s. The use of square meaning “uncool” or “annoying” dates to around the 1930s. The rhyming phrase be there or be square is surprisingly modern, going back to the 1960s. This is part of a complete episode.

2. Have you heard of the expression “bushwhacking”?

We spoke with a listener about the German word querfeldein, or literally “diagonally into the field,” which he used to describe an informal route he and his wife had taken while out for a walk. Many other listeners chimed in with proposed equivalents in English. Many of those involved in orienteering suggested bushwhacking. Others offered jaywalking or walking catty-corner. This is part of a complete episode.

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