Stuff I Looked Up
I consume a lot of content, and I analyze things to death. As a result, I look up a lot of stuff.
For one month (August 2021), I decided to keep track of all the stuff I looked up. It came to almost 100 things. I enjoy researching and writing, so I’ve kept it up since then.
Some of these are things I had never heard of before. But a lot of them are things I “sort of knew.” I tend to figure out things from context a lot, and just fake my way through things. Many of the items below fit that category – stuff I was just faking or fudging, but finally decided to look up and settle.
If it’s just a single term, then I was looking up the definition. Its existence in the list doesn’t mean I was totally ignorant of the term, rather it means that I wasn’t totally sure I knew it, or was wondering if I had been wrong about it.
If I was trying to figure out something more specific, I have listed the more specific question answer below it.
I hope I’m smarter because of it. And I hope you enjoy it.
Recently Added
-
Wedding Vows
-
Ecce Homo
-
The Seven Seas
-
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences
-
Semi-, Bi-, and Twice-
-
Kitten Heel
-
Abbatoir
-
Nitrates
-
The End of History
-
The New Covenant
-
Doxology
-
Brocade
Recently Updated
-
Cosmology
-
Filial
-
Insouciant
-
Ludic
-
Phrenology
-
Grand Guignol
-
High Street
-
Atavism
-
Dragoon
-
Seconded
-
Deep Cut
-
Cavalier
Common Tags
- definition (256 instances)
- geography (54)
- history (49)
- idiom (41)
- faith (27)
- politics (23)
- slang (22)
- food (20)
- french (19)
- military (17)
- music (17)
- media (15)
- sports (14)
- fashion (13)
- judaism (12)
- art (11)
- medicine (11)
- air-travel (10)
The Stuff I Looked Up
- 4MAT
- 4WD vs AWD What's the difference?
- (83)-FOR-TRUTH Who is behind all these billboards?
- 1976 Swine Flu Vaccine Did this vaccine negatively affect health?
- Abbatoir
- Abecedarium
- Abeyance
- Abide
- Abracadabra Where did this come from?
- Abrogate
- Absinthe Where did this get its negative reputation?
- Abyssinia
- ACAB
- The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences How does someone become eligible to join this?
- Acme
- Active Ingredient
- Actual What does this mean when used in military radio transmissions?
- AD
- Adept (noun)
- Aerodrome
- Affordance
- Age of Exploration
- Agentic
- Aggro
- Agitprop
- Aide-de-Camp
- Airsoft How is this different than paintball?
- Alacrity
- Albion
- Algonquin Round Table
- All Politics Is Local
- Alluvial Soil
- Amanuensus
- Amara’s Law
- Ambit
- Ameliorate
- American Beauty Did this phrase precede the 1999 movie?
- Anarchism What's the difference between Anarchism and Libertarianism?
- Anathema
- Andalusia
- Anfractuous
- Anglo-Saxon Why the "Saxon" part?
- Anise
- Anodyne
- Anointing With Oil
- Anomie
- Antebellum
- Antediluvian
- Anthropocene
- Apéritif
- Apoplexy
- Apothecary
- Apotheosis
- Apparatchik
- Appian Way
- Apposite
- Appurtenance
- Aquifer
- Arabia Is this is a specific place?
- Arabic Numbers Are these actually from Arabia?
- Arboretum
- Armory Why do a lot of cities have an armory?
- Arpeggiate
- Arriviste
- Asceticism
- Ashkenazi Jew
- Asperity
- Assignation
- Atavism
- Atelic
- Atelier
- Athletic Booster Is this an official designation?
- Athwart
- Atonement Theory Why did Jesus have to die for our sins?
- Attending Physician
- Aubergine
- August (adjective)
- Autarkic
- Auto-da-fé
- Autodidact, Polyglot, and Polymath
- Autoimmune Disease
- Autoland Can airplanes land themselves?
- Avocado Suite
- Baal
- Baba Ghanoush
- Babylon Does this still exist? What is its eschatological significance?
- Bacchanal
- Backgammon How do you play this?
- Bags or Circles Under The Eyes Why are these associated with lack of sleep?
- The Balfour Declaration
- Balkanization When was this term coined?
- Balustrade
- Bank Holding Company
- Banquette
- Barbary
- Barrel Of Oil How big is this?
- Barrio
- Bas Relief
- based (slang)
- basic (slang)
- Bauhaus
- Bayesian
- Bebe Rebozo
- Begotten
- Benighted
- Bertha How did this get associated with big things?
- Bete Noire
- Betting Rounds in Poker When does the round end?
- Bey / Begum
- Beyond the Pale Where does this phrase come from?
- Bible Church
- Biblical Lifespans How did people live to be that old?
- Bien Pensant
- Bien Sûr
- Bifurcated Needle
- The Big Dig Is it considered a success?
- Bill Of Goods
- Biltmore Estate
- BIPOC
- Bisque
- Bitumen
- Bitwise Operations
- Blackshirts
- Blood Type
- Bloody Sunday
- Blue Laws Why are they called this?
- B’nai B’rith
- Boeing 7-Series Aircraft
- Boer
- Boffin
- Bohemian
- Bolthole
- Bon Viveur
- Bonded Leather
- Bonfire Of The Vanities
- Borscht Belt
- Bossa Nova
- Bourgeois Culture Was this a known/accepted phrase prior to its appearance in 2017?
- Bourse
- Bowdlerization
- Boys’ Town
- Brain Trust
- Brazier
- Breaking News Why do we call it this?
- Breathing Into A Paper Bag Does this actually work?
- Breton Cap
- Brickbat
- Bricolage
- Brio
- British Control of India When did this end?
- British Royal Eras
- Brittany
- Brocade
- Broccolini Does this have anything to do with broccoli?
- Bromide
- Bruin
- Bucket List Did this phrase predate the 2007 movie?
- Bullpup
- Bund
- Bustle
- By Your Leave
- Cabotage
- Cacique
- Caduceus How did this symbol come to be associated with medicine?
- Cairn
- Calculus What does this mean in medicine?
- Cambrian Explosion
- Camera Blocking
- Camino
- Camorra
- Canadian Airport Codes Why do most of them begin with Y?
- Cantilever
- Cap And Trade
- Capacious
- Captain Bligh
- Carapace
- Carat
- Carbon Offsets
- Carbuncular
- Carceral
- Careerist
- Cargo Cult
- Cartesian
- Carthage
- Cashiering
- Cassandra
- Casus Belli
- Cataract
- Catch 22 Where did this phrase originate?
- Cathay
- Caucasian, Mongoloid, and Negroid
- Cavalier
- Cecil Rhodes
- Cement vs. Concrete What's the difference between the two?
- Cenotaph
- Center of Excellence Is there an accepted definition or standard for this phrase?
- Centerfire vs Rimfire Are these brand names or categories? What's the difference?
- Ceylon
- Chanteuse
- Charger Plate
- Charivari
- Chatelaine
- Chekhov’s Gun
- Chemophobia
- Chevy Chase Who had this name first: the actor or the city in Maryland?
- Chewing the Scenery
- Chicken Fried Steak What kind of meat is this?
- Chignon
- Choleric
- Chthonic
- Cistern
- Clear and Present Danger
- Clement
- Cloak and Dagger Where did this phrase come from?
- Cloisters
- Clown Prince
- Collective Noun
- Colorist
- Comare
- Commando Can this refer to a group?
- Commercial Paper
- Concertina
- The Conn
- Containing a Wildfire What does this actually mean?
- Continent How is this formally defined?
- Continental Divide
- Contretemps
- Convocation
- Coolidge Effect
- Coolie
- Coordinated or Responsible Disclosure
- Copperplate
- Coquette
- Cordoba What connection does it have to Arabia?
- Corporeal
- Cosmology Isn't this just astronomy?
- Cote D’Azur
- Counterfactual
- Counterfeit Paradise
- Cri de Coeur
- Cricket How do you play this game?
- Crinolines
- Crip Walk
- Cruciferous Vegetables
- Crudité
- Cryptid
- Cultural Revolution
- Culvert
- -cum-
- Cumberland Gap
- Cursor
- CVN Why is this designation used for aircraft carriers?
- Cyber
- Cyclopean
- Dacoity
- Dag Hammarskjöld
- Daguerreotype
- Daimyo
- Daisy Cutter
- Dal
- Dalmatian Coast
- De Novo
- Dead Reckoning
- Declarative vs. Prescriptive
- Décolletage
- Deep Cut
- DEFCON Is this still a thing?
- Degree of Letters
- Deicide
- Démarche
- Demi Bra
- Dental Insurance Why is this separate from health insurance?
- Detroit Does this word have a general definition?
- Diacritic
- Dialectical
- Dickensian
- Didactic
- Diegesis
- Diesel Exhaust Fluid
- Dionysian
- Diphthong
- Disputatious
- Disputed Books of the Bible
- Dissolving Medicine Under the Tongue Why do we do this?
- Diurnal
- Dollar Billionaire
- The Dolomites
- Donnybrook
- Doom Loop Is this any different than a vicious cycle/circle?
- Doppelganger What's the etymology of this word?
- Dormouse
- Dotard
- Double Blind Study
- Dowager’s Hump
- Down the Rabbit Hole Where did this expression come from?
- Downs How did this word come to be associated with horses?
- Doxology
- Doyenne
- Dragoon
- Dry Goods
- Duane Reade Where did these stores get their name?
- Dutch Disease
- Duty Free
- Duvet
- Dyad
- Dyspeptic
- EBITDA How is this different from normal earnings?
- Ecce Homo
- Ectoplasm
- Edge Rusher
- Edify
- Effete
- Elegiac
- The Emerald City Why is Seattle called this?
- Éminence Grise
- Emirates
- End Billing Why are some actors credited as "and" or "with" after the other cast members?
- The End of History
- Enfilade
- Ennui How do you pronounce this?
- Envince
- Erasmus
- Ergodic
- Escarpment
- Estuary
- Ethnography
- Etiology
- Euphonium
- Eurotrash
- Evanescent
- Everyday Carry
- Ex Nihilo
- Exegesis
- Exigency
- Exogenous vs Endogenous
- Extirpation
- Extol
- Exudate
- Exurb
- Fabulist
- Facile
- Factotum
- Farrago
- Fast Fashion
- Fatuous
- The Fault In Our Stars Did this saying pre-date the novel and film?
- Feckless
- Fecundity
- Ferengi
- Fermi Paradox
- Festoons
- Filial
- Filibuster Does this have meaning outside politics? Can it be used to refer to a general obstacle?
- First Amendment Auditing
- Five-by-Five
- Floor Area Ratio
- Fold (Cooking)
- Fore Why do golfers yell this?
- Forecastle
- Freehold
- Frog March
- Front Range
- Fu Manchu
- Fulsome
- Gaijin
- Gainsay
- Gangs Of New York
- Gaol
- Gauls
- Gematria
- Genuflect
- Geofence Warrant
- Geographic Metonym
- George Soros Why is he the target of so many conspiracy theories?
- Georgia Why do the state and country have the same name?
- Gilded Age
- The Gipper
- Gird Your Loins
- Gizzard
- GLAMP
- God’s Country Is this an actual place?
- Going Commando Did this phrase pre-date the Friends episode that popularized it?
- Gold Leaf Is this actual gold?
- Gonzo Journalism
- Goy
- Grammy Awards What do the different awards mean?
- Grand Guignol
- The Grange
- Gravid
- Great Circle Route
- The Great Firewall Is this a specific thing? And does the Chinese government call it this?
- The Great Reset
- Great White Way
- The Greedy Jewish Moneylender Stereotype How did this come into being?
- Green-Eyed Monster
- Grimoire
- Grip and Gaffer What do these people do on movie sets?
- Grippe
- Guggenheim Museums
- The Gulag Was this a specific place?
- Gun Moll
- Gyre
- Haberdashery
- Hagia Sofia Is this a specific thing?
- Hagiography
- The Hague What's with the "The"?
- Halal
- Halycon Days
- Hammer Pants
- The Hamptons Why always the plural?
- Haole
- Haram
- Hard Science Fiction
- Harlem What are the bounds of this?
- Harlequin
- Harold Hill
- Hawaiian Islands How many are there and how many people live on them?
- Hawala
- Head Mirror Were these real? How did doctors use them?
- Heat Pump
- Hebrew vs. Yiddish What's the difference?
- Hebrides
- Hedge Fund
- Heliotrope
- HEPA Filter
- Hepatitis Viruses Which is the really dangerous letter?
- Hero Sandwich
- Heroic Medicine
- Heterodox
- Heuristic
- Hieronymus Bosch
- High Jinks Where did this come from?
- High Street
- Hinterland
- Historiography
- Holler
- The Holy Spirit
- Homily
- Homunculus
- Hookah Lounge
- Hora
- House Negro
- House vs. Stage Directions
- Howard Beale
- Humanities
- Hun Is this a valid demonym for Hungarians?
- I Ching
- ICBM What is required for a missile to be categorized this way?
- Ichthys
- Icosathlon
- Ides Of March
- Idiopathic
- Ignoble
- Impecunious
- Impresario
- Imprimatur
- In Cold Blood Shouldn't this be "with cold blood"?
- In Country
- Inchoate
- Incunabula
- India Pale Ale (IPA) Where did this name come from?
- Infantry Units What are the relative sizes of the named units?
- Informational Cascade
- Insalubrious
- Inside Baseball
- Insouciance
- Insouciant
- Intellectual and Cultural Eras What are the major eras of intellect and culture, and in what order did they occur?
- Internal Medicine
- Internecine
- Interregnum
- Interstellar
- The Interwar Period And The Lost Generation
- INTP Why do people call attention to this so often?
- Inutile
- Inveigh
- Inverterate Is this used to things other than liars?
- Is 2 a prime number?
- ISBN
- ISIS vs. ISIL What's the difference?
- Isomorphic
- Istria
- Jacobin
- Jayne Hat
- JDM
- “Je Ne Sais Quoi”
- Jefferson Bible
- Jejune
- Jesuit
- Jesuitical
- Jet Black What is the "jet" referring to?
- Jinn
- Jodhpur
- Johari Window
- Jot And Tittle
- Journeyman (sports)
- Jubilee
- Julienne What is the etymology of this?
- Jutland
- Juventus
- Kaftan
- Kenaf
- Kennedy Democrat
- Kenopsia
- Keynesian Economics
- Kidskin
- Kill Why is this word in so many place names in Upstate New York?
- Kinmen Island How close is this to China?
- Kitten Heel
- Kiwanis What does the name mean?
- Knights of Columbus
- Kudzu
- La Dolce Vita
- Lacuna
- LBC
- L’chaim
- Legate
- Leonine
- The Levant
- Ley Lines
- Liberation Theology
- Life of Riley
- Liminal
- Limn
- The Lindy Effect
- Lodestar
- Loess Hills Is this a proper or common noun?
- Loft Apartment Is there an official definition for this?
- Long Term Capital Management (LTCM)
- The Lost Cause Argument
- Loupe
- The Low Countries
- Lox and Cream Cheese How did this become a Jewish tradition?
- Ludic
- Lumpenproletariot
- Luthier
- Lyceum
- Lynch
- Macadam
- Mach Numbers and the Sound Barrier
- Madcap
- Magnet School
- Magus
- Mainline vs. Evangelical Protestantism What is the difference?
- Majoritarian
- Malefactor
- Malinformation, Misinformation, Disinformation What's the difference?
- Malthusian Limit
- Manchuria
- Manic Pixie Dream Girl
- Masala
- Matrilineal
- Maxwell’s Demon
- Mechatronics
- Megawatt How much power is this?
- Memetics
- Memoir vs. Autobiography What's the difference?
- Memphis How did a city in Tennessee get named after a city in Egypt?
- Mendacity
- Mesofact
- Metabolic Syndrome
- Method Acting
- Metropole
- Miasma
- Middle Passage
- Midwest Is this an actual region?
- Mien
- Millwright
- Minster
- Mirth
- Mise-en-Place
- Misogynoir
- Missive
- Mixed Company
- Mohel
- Moloch
- Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact
- Monocoque
- Monopsony
- Morbidity vs. Mortality How are these different?
- Mordant
- Mores
- The Mormons Where did t
- Morning Constitutional
- Morris Chair
- Mot Juste
- Mulct
- Multi-Arm Bandit
- Multiple Gunshot Suicides How common is this?
- Mummification Why don't mummified bodies rot?
- Muscovy
- Muzzle Velocity What's fast? How do handguns and long guns compare?
- Naif
- Narthex
- Nascent
- Ne Plus Ultra
- NEET
- Nehru Jacket
- Neoliberalism
- Neologism
- Nerd Sniping
- The New Covenant
- New Scotland Yard What does the "new" mean?
- The New Zealand National Anthem
- Nickelodeon
- Nihilism vs. Fatalism What's the difference between these two things?
- Nimbus
- Nitrates How are these only dangerous when used in processed meat?
- Nobel Peace Prize Nominations How does someone get nominated? How significant is this?
- The Noble Savage
- Noblesse Oblige
- Noisome
- Nomological Network
- Non-Cagean
- Nonce
- Non-Euclidean
- Non-Fungible Token (NFT)
- Nonplussed
- Noon and Midnight Which one is AM or and which is PM?
- Noosphere
- Northwest Angle
- Numismatics
- Objet d’art
- Oblast
- Oeuvre
- Off Piste
- Officer of the Order of the British Empire
- O’Hare Who is the airport named for?
- Oktoberfest Beer Is this a specific style of beer?
- Old Master
- Oligarchy vs. Plutocracy How are these different?
- On Broadway
- On Tenterhooks
- On the QT What does "QT" stand for?
- Onomatopoeia
- Ontological Arg
- Ontology vs Taxonomy In terms of information science, what's the difference?
- Open Era (tennis)
- Opposition Party Is there a formal definition for this?
- Opprobrium
- ORD Why is this is the airport code for Chicago O'Hare?
- Oriental
- Oriented vs. Orientated Which is correct?
- Orzo
- Oubliette
- Outlaw Country Is this an actual genre or just a marketing term?
- Over-the-Top (OTT)
- Overton Window
- Pacesetter Why can't runners set their own pace?
- Paean
- Pageboy
- Paisley Where did this name come from?
- Palanquin
- Palimpsest
- Palladium
- Paloma
- Panegyrics
- Panel Van Why do we call them this?
- Panko
- Papist
- Paraphilic
- Parasocial
- Parfait
- Paris Commune
- Parkour vs. Freerunning What's the difference?
- Paroxysm
- Parvenu
- Pass Under The Yoke
- Passion Fruit Why is it called this?
- Passport Size Who specifies this?
- Pastiche
- Paterfamilias
- Patois
- Patrician
- Patronymic
- Pax Americana
- Peacock Term
- Pearls Before Swine
- Peckish
- Pecuniary
- Pederasty
- Pellucid
- Penthouse Why is the top-floor apartment called this?
- Perambulate
- Perdition
- Peremptory
- Perfidy
- Perforce
- Pericope
- Pericope Adulteræ Why is this story controversial?
- Perihelion
- Peripatetic
- Permafrost
- Persia Is this a specific place?
- Perspicacious
- Peter Principle
- Phenotype
- Philistinism
- Phrenology
- Picayune
- Pickleball How did this sport get its name?
- Pictogram
- Pied-a-Terre
- Pilloried
- Pinafore
- Pinko
- Piquant
- Piscene
- Pisco
- Plague Is this a general term or a specific disease?
- Plait
- Plebiscite
- Plenary
- Plenipotentiary
- Plinth
- Pliny the Elder
- Pluralism
- Pogrom How is this different than genocide?
- Polari
- Politic
- Port Authority Why did this organization own the World Trade Center?
- Portage
- Portmanteau What's the etymology of the grammatical usage of this word?
- Postmodernism
- Potemkin Village
- Praxis
- Précis
- Pre-Hispanic Mexico
- Prelapsarian
- Prepossessing
- Presbytery
- Prescient
- Pressing Charges Does this have any legal meaning?
- Preternaturally
- Prevailing Winds
- Prevaricate
- Pride Flag What are the black and brown stripes for?
- Privation
- Probity
- Prohibitive Favorite
- Prosaic
- Prosumer
- Protean
- Prussia Is this related to Russia?
- Psalter
- Ptolemy
- Punter
- Putsch
- Pyrenees
- The Quad Why are college gathering places called this?
- Quadrille
- Queer
- Qui Vive
- Quickening
- Race Condition
- Rapacious
- Rashomonic
- Rate of U.S. Gun Violence Does the U.S. have more gun violence per capita than other countries?
- Reading Room
- Rebus
- Recondite
- Rectilinear
- Redoubt
- Reductive
- Reese’s Pieces Where did this name come from?
- Reformed Christianity
- Refusenik
- Regent
- Regicide
- Regulatory Capture
- Reichstag Fire
- Remaster
- Rennet
- REO Speedwagon Where did the band get this name?
- Repast
- Reprobate
- Reprove
- Res Ipsa
- Retention Pond
- Reticent
- Réunion Island
- Revivalist
- Rialto
- The Riot Act What does it mean to "read the Riot Act"?
- Riparian
- Riposte
- The Road To Damascus
- Road Verge
- Rock The Casbah What is a "casbah"?
- Rococo
- Roll Deep
- The Romantic Lie
- The Roosevelt Presidents Were they related?
- The Rosary
- Ruminant
- Runway Length How long is the average runway?
- The Sahel
- Salad Days
- Salient
- Saltpeter Does it really reduce sex drive?
- Salud / Salut
- Salutary
- Sangfroid
- Sapphism
- Sardonic
- Scansion
- Schloss
- Scholia
- Scottish Highlands How much of Scotland is this?
- Scrivener
- Scrofulous
- Scud
- Sea Change
- Seconded
- Secretary Is this from the root word "secret"?
- Sect Why is this a generally negative word?
- Seersucker
- Seism
- Semi-, Bi-, and Twice- What do these prefixes mean when applied to recurring events?
- Semiotic
- Senescent
- Senorita vs. Senora
- Sententious
- Seraph
- Settlement House
- The Seven Seas Is this literal?
- Seventh Day Adventists
- Shabbat
- Shakshouka
- Shear Load
- Sheba Why do we associate this with women?
- Shellshock Isn't this just PTSD?
- Sherd
- Shipping Lane How formal are these?
- Showrunner
- Shrek Did the character exist before the movie?
- Shrift What does this mean in the context of "short shrift"?
- Shuckling
- “sic” a dog Where did this come from?
- Silesia
- Simp
- Simulacrum
- Sine qua non
- Sinecure
- Sisu
- Skein
- Skinflint
- Skinwalker Ranch
- Slug Why do we call a URL segment this?
- Snifter
- Sobriquet
- Solecism
- Solfege
- Solid State
- Solipsism
- Soporific
- Sotto Voice
- Sou
- Souk
- soviet
- Spaces When Alphabetizing Should you count them?
- Specious
- Splash Play
- Spoor
- Spotted Dick
- St. Elmo’s Fire
- Stack Effect
- Stalking Horse
- State University Names Why is there a "Whatever State" and a "University of Whatever"?
- Steely Dan Is this a person?
- Steeplejack
- Stereotomy
- Stevedore
- Stochastic
- Storm Troopers What's the origin of this term?
- Strait of Magellan
- The Strand
- Stygian
- Sub Rosa
- Subaltern
- Subcontinent
- Subluxation
- Succubus
- Sue for Peace
- Sulfurously
- Super G More broadly, what is the difference between the Olympic ski events?
- Surfeit
- Suzerainty
- Svengali
- SWIFT Network
- Sybaritic
- Syllogism
- Syncope
- Synecdoche
- Syzygy
- Tachyon
- Take The Piss
- Tammany Hall
- Tannenbaum
- Tap Beer vs. Draft Beer What's the difference?
- Tarmac
- TARP Did this program make or lose money?
- Teamsters Who is a Teamster?
- Teapot Dome
- Tel
- Temple Mount
- Temporal
- Tendentious
- TEOTWAWKI
- Teqball
- Terra Nullius
- Theodolite
- Theosophy
- Third Reich Why was it the third?
- The Three World Model Why is there no Second World?
- Through the Looking Glass
- Tiger Team What's the origin of this phrase?
- Times Beach
- Tmesis
- T-Minus What does the "T" stand for?
- Tom and Jerry Did this phrase precede the cartoon?
- Topo Gigio
- Toponym Word Order Is there a rule for the order in which the proper name and honorific appear in a toponym?
- Total War
- Transgender Ratio What's the ratio of FtM compared to MtF transgendered persons?
- Transgressive
- Transitive Property or Law
- Transmute
- Transvaal
- Trianon
- Tripartite
- Triple Frontier
- Triple Jump What is the sequence of jumps and why does is seem so awkward?
- Triptych
- Triumvirate
- Troubadour
- Truculent
- Tulum
- Turing Complete
- Turing Test
- Twee
- Types of Aircraft Engines
- Types Of Dirt
- Typesetting
- Unctuous
- Upper Manhattan What neighborhoods are up there?
- Upstate Is this ever used for a place other than New York?
- Uranus Where did this planet get it's name?
- Urtext
- U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Is this really part of the military?
- The U.S. Federal Budget What do we spend our money on, and how easy or hard is it to cut the budget?
- Useful Idiot
- Utopiansim How did this get a negative connotation?
- Vainglorious
- Vanity Fair
- Vassal State
- Verily
- Verité
- Vernal
- Vespers
- Viand
- Vicissitude
- -ville Why is this suffix so prevalent in some regions?
- Virgin Forest
- vis-a-vis
- Vituperative
- Voodoo Science
- Vouchsafe
- Voxel
- Wagnerian
- Waking Surgery
- Waldo Arm
- Wan
- Wax Nostalgic How is "wax" a verb?
- Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMDs) in Iraq Did we ever find anything?
- Wedding Vows Are there a standard set of vows?
- The Week Where did this time division come from?
- Weenus
- Wet-Bulb Temperature
- Whiz Kids
- Wicked Problem
- Wildcat
- Will Call
- Winsome
- With / Without Prejudice Which one is final?
- Wit’s End
- World Trade Center, Building 7 What are the conspiracy theories around this?
- Yahtzee What does the name mean?
- Yak Shaving
- Yale Whiffenpoofs
- Yellow Peril
- The Yips
- Zebroid
- Zeeland, Zealand, and New Zealand Are these places related?
- The Zeigarnik Effect
- Zelig
- Zion
- Zocalo
- Zoophagy
- Zoroastrianism