The word 'eavesdropper' originally referred to people who, under the pretence of taking in some fresh air, would stand under the 'eavesdrip' of their house - from which the collected raindrops would fall - in the hopes of catching any juicy tid-bits of information that might come their way from their neighbour's property.
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According to my parents, I've always liked to tune into the conversations of others. But rather thaSusie Dent:
What I've discovered is that from football fans to undertakers, secret agents to marble-players andSusie Dent:
The earliest dictionaries were collections of criminal slang, swapped amongst ne'er-do-wells as a mSusie Dent:
Booze' was once a popular term in the slang or 'cant' of the criminal underworld, which may explainSusie Dent:
Bizarrely, our English word 'sturdy' may go back to the Latin turdus, thrush. Anyone described as 'Susie Dent:
The notion of 'Queen's English' is usually applied to our pronunciation.Susie Dent:
In the middle of the 20th century, aspirations to sound 'proper' were passionately pursued. DictionSusie Dent:
English has always been a mongrel tongue, snapping up words from every continent its speakers encouSusie Dent:
Probably my favourite winter-word of all. Apricity is the warmth of the sun on a chilly day.Susie Dent:
Glogg is a Scandinavian mulled wine, sweetened with honey, almonds, raisins and spices. Its name su