[This episode first aired October 18, 2008.] This week on A Way with Words: Fess up: Do you have a pet name for your car? How about your computer? Martha and Grant discuss the urge to give nicknames to inanimate objects in our lives. Also, why do we speak of 'vetting' a political candidate? And what in the world is a 'zoo plane'? Fess up, now: Do you have a pet name for your car? Or maybe you spend so much quality time with your computer that you've given it a particularly affectionate moniker? What is it about inanimate objects--particularly technological gadgets--that inspires us to give them special nicknames? Martha raises these questions, and Grant reveals the name he selected for his own computer. 'If I had my druthers...' A former Texan says the youngsters he works with in his adopted home of Ohio don't understand this expression meaning 'If I had my way.' He wants to know its origin. If you still can't get enough of the word 'druthers,' this video should cure you pretty quickly: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7EToqIxHfXo How can I improve my vocabulary, and remember the words I do learn? When a San Diego listener asks that question, Grant and Martha share some practical tips on how to boost your vocabulary. For starters, forget the flash cards, and reach for a library card instead. We hear a lot about vetting candidates for political office, but where'd we get the verb 'to vet'? Does vetting have to do with 'veterans,' or 'veterinarians,' or something else entirely?   John Chaneski's latest puzzle is 'The Yo-Yo Quiz,' and it's not about famous cellists or first person pronouns in Spanish. The object is to guess the missing word that can be paired with either 'up' or 'down' to mean different things. For example, try to guess the one-word answer here: 'With 'up,' it means 'to laugh uncontrollably.' With 'down' it means 'to become more strict about an issue.'' If someone is poor as Joe's turkey, he's impoverished. A caller raised in the South has heard that expression all his life, but wonders: Who was Joe, and what did his turkey have to do with anything? Things get clearer when Martha explains the original turkey's owner wasn't Joe, but the Biblical Job. Some native Spanish speakers prefer the term Hispanic, while others adamantly insist on Latino. The hosts discuss the origins of these words, and a bit about the controversy over their use. A San Diego history buff is curious about the word stingaree. This slang term once referred to part of the city's red-light district, and remains the name of a stylish downtown restaurant and nightclub in the city's Gaslamp district. Grant illuminates the risque origin of this unusual word. This week's 'Slang This!' contestant from the National Puzzlers' League http://puzzlers.org tries to decipher the difference between zoo planes and zipper clippers. She also puzzles over a sentence in which the words brindle and verse used in surprising ways. Ever had a friend who never can quite say 'goodbye'? Say you're finishing up an email conversation, you both say like 'so long,' but then up pops another email from him, asking just one more question or mentioning one more bit of news. A caller from Hillsboro, Oregon wants to know if there's a word for that kind of lingering, drawn-out goodbye. Martha calls it 'doorknob hanging,' but Grant has a more technical term used by linguists. Is the expression beck and call, or beckon call? And what's a beck, anyway? Hegemony is defined as 'preponderant influence or authority over others.' But how do you pronounce it? Heh-JEH-mun-ee? HEDJ-uh-moh-nee? Heh-GEM-un-ee? A caller's unsure which pronunciation is preferred. Grant gives Martha a pop quiz about the meaning of the English word opifex. And no, it's not a hoofed African quadruped. -- Get your language question answered on the air! Call or write 24 hours a day: (877) WAY-WORD/(877) 929-9673, words@waywordradio.org, or visit our web site and discussion forums at http://waywordradio.org. Copyright 2008, Wayword LLC.