Enthusiastic book recommendations! Martha's savoring the biography of Alexander von Humboldt, the 19th-century explorer, polymath, and naturalist who revolutionized our understanding of nature and predicted the effects of human activity on climate. Grant's enjoying A Brief History of Everyone Who Ever Lived, about how the study of DNA is rewriting our understanding of history itself. And a customer is startled when a salesperson waves goodbye with a friendly Preesh! Is Preesh really a word you might use to say you appreciate someone's business? Plus, what's a tizzy and where would you hunt for it? All that, and whang, sloomy, abbiocco, receipt vs. recipe, scorn vs. scone, the language of emotions, poronkusema, a brain-tickling puzzle about the letter P, and the story behind the unit of distance called a smoot. http://waywordradio.org

Made from Scratch (#1583)

Quiz Guy John Chaneski's puzzle requires replacing an initial consonant with the letter P. For example, John says he plans to open what his mother used to call a beauty parlor in his home, but his will have a romantic twist. His establishment will feature beauty treatments for couples only. What kind of business would this be? http://waywordradio.org

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The English adjective sloomy means "sluggish" or "sleepy," and a sloom is "a light sleep." http://waywordradio.org

1583-Sloomy

The word whang is an old term used in New England, particularly Maine. It's a term for an annual party where you invite your friends and neighbors to help you with the drudgery of spring cleaning. http://waywordradio.org

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In Finland, there's an old tradition of counting approximate distances in terms of poronkusema, literally "reindeer pee," which is supposedly the distance a reindeer will travel between pit stops. http://waywordradio.org

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A listener had told us that she'd bought an old house with a separate room off of the kitchen that contained a dishwashing sink and cupboards and wondered what to call it. We noted that it's sometimes called simply a sink room, but many listeners wrote and called to suggest another term: scullery. http://waywordradio.org

1583-Scullery

A Way with Words is a fun and funny public radio program about language examined through history, culture, and family. Its mission is to change the way you think about language. The program is heard by broadcast and podcast across the United States and around the world by more than a quarter-million listeners each week. It's produced by Wayword, Inc., a nonprofit whose mission is to promote lifelong learning, better human communication, and the value of a thing well-said or well-written. Call or write with your language questions at any time: (877) 929-9673 (toll-free in the US and Canada) or just email us: words@waywordradio.org.