Right off the bat, it’s easy to think of several everyday expressions that derive from America’s pastime–including “right off the bat.” The Dickson Baseball Dictionary catalogues not only those contributions but also more obscure terms like “pebble picker,” and explains why a fastball is called a “Linda Ronstadt.” Plus, as more transgender people are publicly recognized, there’s some debate about which pronouns to use. And who in the world would give a one-star review on Amazon to … Herman Melville’s Moby-Dick? Plus, the plural of hummus, “tear the rag off the bush,” “to boot,” synesthesia, paper stretchers, wet washes, and the verb to podcast.

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