"White Elephant" & "Wear Your Heart on Your Sleeve" and the Wonderful Origins of Everyday Expressions
Our American Stories
iHeartPodcasts
4.6 • 817 Ratings
🗓️ 14 July 2025
⏱️ 13 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
On this episode of Our American Stories, Andrew Thompson shares another slice of his guide to understanding the baffling mini-mysteries of the English language. His book is Hair of the Dog to Paint the Town Red: The Curious Origins of Everyday Sayings and Fun Phrases. This time, Andrew explores the backstories of phrases like “white elephant” and “wear your heart on your sleeve,” among others.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | This is an IHeart podcast. |
| 0:05.0 | I know a lot of cops. |
| 0:06.7 | They get asked all the time. |
| 0:08.3 | Have you ever had to shoot your gun? |
| 0:10.2 | Sometimes the answer is yes. |
| 0:12.0 | But there's a company dedicated to a future |
| 0:14.7 | where the answer will always be no. |
| 0:18.0 | This is Absolute Season 1, Taser Incorporated. I get right back there and it's bad. |
| 0:25.0 | Listen to Absolute Season 1, Taser Incorporated on the IHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. |
| 0:34.2 | If you're looking for another heavy podcast about trauma, the saying it. |
| 0:39.3 | This is for the ones who had to survive and still show up as brilliant, loud, soft, and whole. |
| 0:45.0 | The unwanted sorority is where black women, fims, and gender expansive survivors of sexual violence, rewrite the rules on healing, support, and what happens after. |
| 0:53.6 | And I'm your host and co-president of this organization, Dr. Leah Tretate. |
| 0:58.0 | Listen to the unwanted sorority, new episodes every Thursday on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. |
| 1:06.5 | The OGs of Uncensored Motherhood are back and badder than ever. |
| 1:10.2 | I'm Erica. |
| 1:10.9 | And I'm Mila. |
| 1:11.6 | And we're the host of the Good Mom's Bad Choices podcast, brought to you by the Black Effect Podcast Network every Wednesday. |
| 1:18.0 | Yeah, we're moms, but not your mommy. |
| 1:20.3 | Historically, men talk too much. |
| 1:22.5 | And women have quietly listened. |
| 1:24.2 | And all that stops here. |
... |
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