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  • Which German terms are in the English zeitgeist? | GERMAN WORDS
    2026/08/26

    Willkommen! Jess and Rob are exploring the German words in English. In this Zeitgeisty episode, discover:

    👻 What doppelgänger literally means,
    📏 The longest German word,
    🤧 And why Americans say "Gesundheit!" when they sneeze.

    Satisfy your linguistic wanderlust in another wunderbar edition of Words Unravelled.

    👕 OUR MERCH 👚
    US SHOP: https://wordsunravelledshop.myspreadshop.com/
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    🎥 WATCH THIS EPISODE: https://youtu.be/Lad89Mtao0U

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    49 分
  • Why is English full of Latin? | LATIN WORDS
    2026/08/19

    You speak more Latin than you think. Not only are the many French words in English derived from Latin, but almost 30% of our vocabulary comes directly from the language of the Romans. In this episode, Rob and Jess explore how those words got there, what they literally mean, and whether we are using them correctly.

    👕 OUR MERCH 👚
    US SHOP: https://wordsunravelledshop.myspreadshop.com/
    EU/UK SHOP: https://wordsunravelledshop.myspreadshop.net/

    🎥 WATCH THIS EPISODE: https://youtu.be/52GtCvS7HCU

    ==LINKS==
    Rob's YouTube channel: youtube.com/robwords
    Jess' Useless Etymology blog: https://uselessetymology.com/
    Rob on X: x.com/robwordsyt
    Jess on TikTok: tiktok.com/@jesszafarris

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    41 分
  • Are sharks named after people? | OCEAN WORDS
    2026/08/12

    Rob and Jess are taking the deepest of dives into the origins of words from the ocean.
    🐟 Are many fish 'fish' or 'fishes'?
    🦈 Why is there a mystery around sharks?
    🐠 What is a sarcastic fringehead?
    These questions answered, and many more, in this subaquatic special of Words Unravelled.

    🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 ROB EDINBURGH TICKETS: https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/robwords-live

    👕 OUR MERCH 👚
    US SHOP: https://wordsunravelledshop.myspreadshop.com/
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    👀 WATCH THIS EPISODE: https://youtu.be/-54FiJ0PsXo

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    52 分
  • Does 'Abracadabra' mean anything? | MAGIC WORDS
    2026/08/05

    Take a pinch of witchcraft, add a touch of sorcery, and "Hey presto!" you have a wordy nerdy episode about magical terms.

    🧙 Can only women be witches?
    🔒 What did a warlock originally do?
    🪄 What is the literal meaning of 'Alakazam'?

    These questions answered – and many more – in another enchanting episode of Words Unravelled.

    🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 ROB'S EDINBURGH SHOW: https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/robwords-live

    👕 OUR MERCH 👚
    US SHOP: https://wordsunravelledshop.myspreadshop.com/
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    WATCH THIS EPISODE: https://youtu.be/O5DTL8Ogoo4

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    48 分
  • What's so great about 'seventh' heaven? | NUMBER IDIOMS
    2026/07/29

    We're exploring the origins of common sayings relating to numbers in this episode.

    🥉 Why is the third time a charm?
    ⛅️ What's so great about "seventh heaven"?
    🙃 Why do we say "at sixes and sevens"?

    Rob and Jess explore these numerical idioms – and many more – in this magnificently mathematical edition of Words Unravelled.

    👕 OUR MERCH 👚
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    🎥 WATCH THIS EPISODE: https://youtu.be/gH0Zz10y9Ek

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    50 分
  • Words the Vikings left behind | OLD NORSE
    2026/07/22

    What did the Vikings do for us? Rob and Jess are exploring the words left behind by the Scandinavian invaders.

    🪓 How much of English is Old Norse?
    🗺️ Which place names are inherited from "the Danes"?
    📝 How did the Norsemen change English grammar?

    These questions answered, and many more, in another Words Unravelled.

    👕 OUR MERCH 👚
    US SHOP: https://wordsunravelledshop.myspreadshop.com/
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    🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 ROB EDINBURGH TICKETS: https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/robwords-live

    WATCH THIS EPISODE: https://youtu.be/La3toomR-ow

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    42 分
  • Are you pronouncing 'caramel' wrong? | ACCENTS (ft. Valerie Fridland)
    2026/07/15

    Why do Americans and Brits have the accents they have? Sociolinguist, professor and author Valerie Fridland joins Rob and Jess this week to discuss why we talk funny.

    🍮 Does 'caramel' have one or two syllables?
    🪶 Do Americans sound more like Shakespeare than Brits?
    🎩 Why do some accents sound 'posher' than others?

    These questions answered, an many more, in another gloriously nerdy episode of Words Unravelled.

    📘 VALERIE'S BOOKS 📕
    Why We Talk Funny: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/744046/why-we-talk-funny-by-valerie-fridland/
    Like, Literally, Dude: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/671558/like-literally-dude-by-valerie-fridland/

    👕 OUR MERCH 👚
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    🎥 WATCH THIS EPISODE: https://youtu.be/t71jZBSfack

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    49 分
  • What does 'Mona Lisa' even mean? | ART WORDS
    2026/07/08

    How does an artist use a 'donkey'? What does 'Mona Lisa' actually mean? Who is the "dada" in Dadaism? Rob and Jess are explaining word origins from the art world in the latest Words Unravelled, exploring artists, artworks and art supplies.

    🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿ROB'S EDINBURGH SHOW🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿
    Tickets: https://www.edfringe.com/tickets/whats-on/robwords-live

    👕 OUR MERCH 👚
    US SHOP: https://wordsunravelledshop.myspreadshop.com/
    EU/UK SHOP: https://wordsunravelledshop.myspreadshop.net/

    WATCH THIS EPISODE: https://youtu.be/0xi1MatI3pw

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    47 分