135.2 - The Story of "Jingle Bells"

⭐ Take part in our Free ⁠14-Day English Slang and Expression Challenge.⁠ Why do Americans call it soccer instead of football? Why isn't it the most popular sport in the country? And do Americans actually care about the World Cup? In this episode, Shana explores the history of soc ...  Show more

⭐ Want to start sounding more natural in English? Sign up to ⁠⁠the Academy⁠⁠ to learn more with each lesson. About this episode Why do doughnuts have holes? Who invented them? And how did they become one of America's most beloved treats? In this episode, we'll explore the fascina ...  Show more

Hoy vamos a entrevistar a uno de nuestros oyentes y amigos. Él es Thomas Harbin, un músico quién vive aquí en Nashville y quien se enteró de nosotros por medio del podcast y luego nos conocimos en persona. Thomas nos va a contar sobre su vida y sobre todo lo relacionado con su ca ...  Show more

We have books for language-lovers and recommendations for history buffs. • How did the word boondoggle come to denote a wasteful project? The answer involves the Boy Scouts, a baby, a craft project, and a city council meeting. • Instead of reversing just individual letters, some ...  Show more

In deafening workplaces, like sawmills and factories, workers develop their own elaborate sign language to discuss everything from how their weekend went to when the boss is on his way. Plus, English speakers borrowed the words lieutenant and precipice from French, and made some ...  Show more

When a teenager went a week without talking as part of a school project, he noticed a surprising side effect: Instead of rehearsing a response to what other people were saying to him, he was focused on listening — and feeling smarter as a result. Plus, a flight attendant is irrit ...  Show more