Skip to content
A Way with Words is an upbeat and lively show about language examined through culture, history, and family. Language debates, variations, and evolution, as well as new words, old sayings, slang, family expressions, word histories, etymology, linguistics, regional dialects, word games, grammar, books, literature, writing, and more.

A Way with Words

Listen Live

Listen Live

A one-hour edition of the popular afternoon radio newsmagazine delivering breaking news mixed with compelling analysis, insightful commentaries, interviews and special features, and transforming the way listeners understand current events and view the world.
Next

Weekend All Things Considered

A one-hour edition of the popular afternoon radio newsmagazine delivering breaking news mixed with compelling analysis, insightful commentaries, interviews and special features, and transforming the way listeners understand current events and view the world.

WHYY
rewind
play
fast-forward
 
 
 
Radio Schedule
WHYY
  • DONATE
Primary Menu
  • News
  • Radio & Podcasts
    • Radio Schedule
    • Ways to Stream
    • WHYY Listen App
  • TV
    • WHYY TV Schedule
    • WHYY Watch App
    • Live TV
    • Watch on Demand
    • Stream PBS Kids
  • Arts
  • Events
  • Education
    • WHYY Youth Media
    • WHYY Media Labs
    • WHYY Early Education Programs
    • For Students
    • Pathways to Media Careers
    • Youth Media Awards
  • Support
    • Membership
    • WHYY Passport
    • WHYY Member Portal
    • Sponsorship
    • Vehicle Donation Program
    • Volunteer
  • NEWSLETTERS
  • DONATE

History

A bullet-riddled sign that once marked where Emmett Till's body was pulled from the Tallahatchie River is now housed at the Till Interpretive Center in Sumner, Miss. The historic marker was taken down after three white fraternity brothers from the University of Mississippi were pictured holding guns next to the sign. (Debbie Elliott/NPR)
NPR
Community

‘Why don’t y’all let that die?’ Telling the Emmett Till story in Mississippi

Till's murder propelled the civil rights movement, but telling his story brings a reluctance for some in Mississippi "to come to grips with its history of racial brutality."

7 years ago

The Sandy Hook lighthouse, first built in 1764, stands Jan. 22, 2002, behind buildings that were once part of the Army's Fort Hancock, located on Sandy Hook, N.J. (Mike Derer/AP Photo)
Community

‘Mind the light’: Women lighthouse keepers’ little-known stories shared through historical records, public memory

Morning Edition host Jennifer Lynn spoke with lighthouse researcher Shauna MacDonald about the little-known women in history who ran them.

7 years ago

Listen 6:06
Vintage military vehicles and reenactors take part in a reenactment of the liberation of Paris from German occupation to celebrate its 75th anniversary, in Paris, France, August 25, 2019.  REUTERS/Charles Platiau - RC18C82A7B40
Community
PBS NewsHour

Paris celebrates its liberation from Nazis, 75 years on

The liberation of Paris was both joyous and chaotic

7 years ago

Hundreds gather at the President’s House on Independence Mall to commemorate the 400th anniversary of the first arrival of enslaved Africans. (Miguel Martinez for WHYY)
Community

‘We didn’t just sit down and let this happen’: Hundreds in Philly mark 400th anniversary of American slavery

"They're helping to make history. They may not realize it now, but one day they'll be able to look back and say, 'I was there.'"

7 years ago

Listen 1:06
Billie Holiday performs on stage at the Sugar Hill nightclub in Newark, N.J. Farah Jasmine Griffin's 2001 book posed a challenge to biographers and helped reimagine Holiday's legacy. (Bob Parent/Getty Images)
NPR
Arts & Entertainment

Returning to lady: A reflection on two decades ‘In Search Of Billie Holiday’

Farah Jasmine Griffin's 2001 book on Billie Holiday posed a challenge to biographers and our understanding of Holiday. She reflects on her changing connection to Lady Day.

7 years ago

The Mapping Memory exhibition in at the Blanton Museum of Art in Austin, Texas, displays maps made in the late 1500s of what is now Mexico. They were created by indigenous peoples to help Spanish invaders map occupied lands. This watercolor and ink map of Meztitlán was made in 1579 by Gabriel de Chavez. (Blanton Museum of Art)
NPR
Arts & Entertainment

440 years old and filled with footprints, these aren’t your everyday maps

The maps demonstrate a very different sense of space than maps drawn by Europeans. They're not drawn to scale; instead, they're deeply utilitarian.

7 years ago

This painting by Sidney King depicts Virginia in 1619 as a Dutch frigate docks at Point Comfort bringing 20 African slaves to be traded to the settlers for food. (AP Photo)
The Philadelphia Experiment
Community
The Philadelphia Experiment

Point Comfort’s legacy: Slavery and scars, but also strength that builds from pushing back

When you’re always pushing against the weight of oppression, it’s like your soul is pumping iron. The heavier the weight, the stronger your spirit gets.

7 years ago

Listen 2:31
This July 10, 2019 photo shows the refurbished Lazaretto Quarantine Station in Essington, Pa. (Jacqueline Larma/AP Photo)
Urban Planning

Tiny suburban Philly township saves, transforms historic quarantine station

For Tinicum Township, renovating the Lazaretto Quarantine Station was part of a broader plan to draw visitors to the community.

7 years ago

Samip Mallik, director and co-founder of the South Asian American Digital Archive, stands at 6th and Arch streets, the former site of the Female Medical College of Pennsylvania. (Emma Lee/WHYY)
Arts & Entertainment

Coming soon: Audio walking tour of Philly’s South Asian history, set to new music

This fall, discover a new self-guided audio walking tour of Old City that uncovers hidden stories of South Asians in Philadelphia.

7 years ago

Listen 1:38
'All this stuff touches home. It doesn’t go back that far,' says Germantown resident Mark Keenheel as he looks at items in the Lest We Forget Museum of Slavery recently in August. (Michael D'Onofrio/The Philadelphia Tribune)
Community
The Philadelphia Tribune

Slavery and Philly: Since arrival of first enslaved Africans, deep scars exists here, across Commonwealth

Enslaved Africans were present in the region well before William Penn planted England’s flag here in 1681.

7 years ago

The Very Rev. Canon Martini Shaw stands outside of the African Episcopal Church of St. Thomas. (Ronald Gray/The Philadelphia Tribune)
Community
The Philadelphia Tribune

Atlantic slave trade legacy still drives local roots of Black church

As the 400th anniversary of the Transatlantic Slave Trade approaches, religious leaders said the legacy of the early Black church must continue for complete freedom

7 years ago

Thomas Birch, Fairmount Water Works 1821. (Courtesy of the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia)
Arts & Entertainment

PAFA exhibit celebrates the untold history of Philadelphia landscape painting

Without the Schuylkill River School, there may never have been a Hudson River School, says the curator of a Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts exhibit.

7 years ago

Vintage baseball clubs from Philadelphia and Delaware will honor one of the game’s original stars, Fergy Malone, with a grave marker on Sunday and then renew their own friendly rivalry. (Courtesy of Diamond State Baseball Club)
Community

Vintage baseball clubs from Philadelphia, Delaware team up to honor 1800s star with gravestone

Fergy Malone was one of baseball’s original standouts. He was buried in an unmarked grave. Two vintage teams will honor him with a gravestone Sunday in Philadelphia.

7 years ago

Listen 1:03
Rowhouses line Spruce Street in Fitler Square. (Emma Lee/ WHYY)
PlanPhilly
Community
PlanPhilly

‘Rowhouse’ vs. ‘rowhome’? The tangled history of a uniquely Philadelphia term

Nothing gets Philadelphia grammarians riled up more than a question of local dialect. Enter: the debate over Philadelphia’s most common building.

7 years ago

The Bucks County Playhouse was once a working mill but was converted into a summer theater in the 1930s. (Kimberly Paynter/WHYY)
Arts & Entertainment

Bucks County Playhouse is looking for its history — and needs your help

As it celebrates its 80th anniversary, the Bucks County Playhouse is looking for everything from posters to playbills to piece together its missing history.

7 years ago

Page 91 of 151« First«...8990919293...»Last »
Arts & Entertainment Community Courts & Law Education Health Lifestyle Money Politics & Policy Science Urban Planning Weather
  • WHYY thanks our sponsors — become a WHYY sponsor
  • WHYY thanks our sponsors — become a WHYY sponsor

Latest News

  • Philadelphia’s first Black Male Engagement summit centers resources, mentorship and opportunity

    11 minutes ago

  • SEPTA’s 11th Street Station will close Sept. 5 to add elevators; project could take more than a year

    32 minutes ago

  • Free Library of Philadelphia expands Critical AI Literacy series with hands-on workshop

    10 hours ago

  • WHYY thanks our sponsors — become a WHYY sponsor

Want a digest of WHYY’s programs, events & stories? Sign up for our weekly newsletter.

Together we can reach 100% of WHYY’s fiscal year goal

Donate
Learn about WHYY Member benefits
Ways to Donate
WHYY

WHYY provides trustworthy, fact-based, local news and information and world-class entertainment to everyone in our community.

WHYY offers a voice to those not heard, a platform to share everyone’s stories, a foundation to empower early and lifelong learners and a trusted space for unbiased news. Learn more about Social Responsibility at WHYY. It’s how we live.

Contact Us

Philadelphia

215.351.1200
talkback@whyy.org

Delaware

302.516.7506
talkback@whyy.org

Our Programs

  • Albie’s Elevator
  • Ask Governor Meyer
  • Billy Penn at WHYY
  • Check, Please! Philly
  • The Connection
  • The Declaration’s Journey
  • Delishtory
  • Flicks
  • Fresh Air
  • Good Neighbor Club
  • Good Souls
  • Hittin’ Season
  • Jukebox Journey
  • On Stage at Curtis
  • Peak Travel
  • PlanPhilly
  • The Pulse
  • The Source
  • Sports In America
  • Studio 2
  • Things To Do
  • WHYY News Climate Desk
  • You Oughta Know

Inside WHYY

  • About
    • Social Responsibility at WHYY
    • Board and Executives
    • Community Advisory Board
    • Frequently Asked Questions
    • Employment
    • Internships
    • Press Room
    • Meet Our Newsroom
    • WHYY News Style Guide
    • WHYY Productions
    • WHYY Spaces
    • Submissions
    • History
    • Directions
    • Coverage Area
    • Financial Statements
    • WHYY Community Report
    • Supporters
    • Privacy
  • Mobile Apps
  • Meet Our Newsroom
  • Employment
  • Lifelong Learning Award
  • Bridging Blocks
  • Contact Us
  • Sponsorship
  • Directions
  • FCC Public Files
  • FCC Applications

Follow Us

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • YouTube
Sign up for a Newsletter

© 2026 WHYY

  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use for WHYY.org