What does one call something that contains the seeds of its own downfall? [more inside]
posted by viewofdelft on Oct 5, 2006 - 35 answers

English language question: what is the difference between intern/internship and trainee/traineeship? [+] [more inside]
posted by elgilito on Jan 28, 2005 - 18 answers

Edwardian slang. I'm in the midst of an Upstairs Downstairs marathon and the daughter of the house keeps using a word that sounds like "deevee" and apparently means something like "cool." I've googled (hard when you don't know the spelling) and gone through online dictionaries of Victorian and Edwardian slang, but no luck on what it means or the derivation. Can anyone enlighten me?
posted by helcat on Jan 1, 2005 - 22 answers

What does "normative" mean? Is it a useful word? I only ever see it used in obscure, academic writing, which makes me suspect it's worthless. How is it different from "normal"? My dictionary says it means, "Of, relating to, or prescribing a norm or standard: normative grammar." That sounds like "normal" to me, so why not just say "normal"? Can someone give me some clear sentences that use the word -- sentences that are not written in post-modern, complit speak? Can one use "normative" meaningfully in a sentence about real-world things, like butter, eggs or bricks?
posted by grumblebee on May 21, 2004 - 24 answers

What, exactly, is "riding the clutch"? [more inside] [more inside]
posted by crunchburger on Feb 19, 2004 - 16 answers