A Word in Your Ear: Christmas Language
Professor Roly Sussex explains the phrases of the festive season.
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Emeritus Professor Roly Sussex walks you through the linguistic mindfield, explaining the weird and wonderful aspects of English and many other languages.
Professor Roly Sussex explains the phrases of the festive season.
What does it mean to be polite, and has that changed in recent years?
Professor Roly Sussex clarifies some common pronunciation problems and why different places have differing ways of saying the same thing.
Everyone loves a fresh turn of phrase, a new saying or an untested expression. These newly coined phrases are called neologisms.
It might shock you, but Professor Roly Sussex says some language rules are made to be broken.
From "10-4" to "hammer down", Professor Roly Sussex unlocks the secret language of the roads.
Professor Roly Sussex takes us on a journey through history and language to explore France's lasting influence on the English vocabulary.
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Professor Roly Sussex unpacks the different ways women communicate, and how these contrasts emerged.
Professor Roly Sussex discusses the origins and uses of our 26 letters, and explains why we don't use a phonetic alphabet.
Professor Roly Sussex is joined by ABC Radio Australia presenter Michael Chow, who speaks two and a half Papua New Guinean languages.
Professor Roly Sussex unpacks the language of some of the most successful adverts and why they have stood the test of time.
Do you call a spade a spade, or do you prefer to be a bit more gentle with the things you say? Professor Roly Sussex explores the use of hed...
Professor Roly Sussex explores how new insults have emerged and why some have disappeared from our vocabulary.
Food isn't just something we eat, it's something we speak. Professor Roly Sussex takes a bite out of the language of food, exploring the dif...
Arvo, brekkie, sunnies, mozzie, servo...the list goes on. Professor Roly Sussex explains why us Aussies shorten our words more than anyone e...
Young people have always reshaped the way we speak, reinventing new lingo to distinguish themselves. Professor Roly Sussex unpacks how slang...
The English language has developed various regional and social norms that continue to cause confusion. Professor Roly Sussex addresses some...
The rise of computer technology forced the English language to adapt, and fast! But where did these words come from and how did they take ro...
What makes a language successful? Professor Roly Sussex discusses why some languages rise while others fade.
As the English language has evolved, various pronunciations, norms, and mistakes have formed. Professor Roly Sussex takes us through some of...
Grab a cuppa and gear up for a chinwag. Professor Roly Sussex has a yarn to explain great Aussie phrases.
When you "dust" something, are you removing the dust or adding it? Professor Roly Sussex unravels the double meanings of contronyms.
Have you got a grammar gripe? Frustrated by a phrase? Professor Roly Sussex tackles your language queries.
Ever wondered how your favourite footy teams got their names? Professor Roly Sussex tackles the phrases of footy.
Did you know that 70% of the world's languages use alphabets similar to English? Professor Roly Sussex breaks down the building blocks of th...
If you make your kids cringe with dad jokes, this episode's for you! Professor Roly Sussex discusses the power of puns, and why language lov...
Whether you're rolling in it or down to your last cent, the words we use for money are rich with meaning. So this week, Professor Roly Susse...
"Hows the weather going?" "What have you been up to?" Small talk takes up a huge chunk of our daily conversation, but what role does it serv...
The death of Pope Francis has set off a linguistic wave as words once reserved for church halls are now hitting the headlines. Professor Rol...
Phrasal verbs are verbs with more than one word like 'wake up' and 'look forward to'. There are thousands of them in English and they can be...
What is the history of birthdays? These days, people celebrate with cake, candles, balloons and gifts! However, after years of celebrating w...
English is Australia's de facto national language and like many nations, us Aussie's have put our own spin on it. Many Australians are even...
Nothing gets our gold and green nation going like a good game of sport and in particular footy! Where it's League, Rugby or AFL - our passio...
Australia is the most Irish country in the world outside Ireland. Irish-born immigrants and their descendants have been a feature of the Aus...
Have you ever heard weather phrases such as 'the wet', 'rain bomb' or 'mizzle' and wonder where they came from or what they actually mean? R...
Often times Australians will initially adopt Americanisms ironically but after a while the irony disappears and those words and phrases beco...
Whether you're meeting someone for the first time or you see them every day, the way we greet and farewell someone can say a lot about your...
It's an age old question: 'Haitch' or 'Aitch'? What do the differences in how we pronounce words say about us?
Now that the festive season is done, its time to pack up the decorations, put away leftover wrapping paper and store this year's Christmas c...
Roly Sussex explores the origins of giving, and words like philanthropy, donations and charity.
What's the difference between Qantas and the ATO? Roly Sussex will take you into the strange world of acronyms and initialisms.
Americanisms have had such an impact on our language that ABC's Roly Sussex has recorded over 10,000 of them.
Boo! From witches to wicca, Roly Sussex peeks behind the curtain of words like ghosts, spectres, Halloween and haunts.
With US elections on the horizon, Roly Sussex investigates the language of democracy.
It's the delicious language of Italy on the menu tonight.
Are you feeling tip-top, hoity-toity or namby-pamby today? Roly investigates the curiosities of echo phrases.
Do dogs go "whoof, whoof", "ruff, ruff" or "wan, wan"? Roly Sussex explores the origins of onomatopoeia.
What's the Aussie origins of the slang, jargon and banter of our nation's greatest footy code?
A "blessing in disguise" or a "blessing in the skies"? Roly Sussex dives into the elusive mondegreen.