Squeaky bums and magic sponges: the language of football (or soccer, if you prefer)
Lexipoddery: the OED podcast by Craig Leyland and Fiona McPherson
Episode notes
Why do tense moments lead to squeaky bums? What wizardry lies in the magic sponge? Who would want to hit an onion bag? Join Oxford English Dictionary lexicographers Craig Leyland and Fiona McPherson to celebrate the start of the football World Cup with a perusal of OED entries relating to the beautiful game.
Come back for another episode in three weeks (July 1st), when we’ll be looking at some of the particularly interesting new and revised material in the OED’s June 2026 update.
Music by Matt Cutmore
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Keywords
English languageOxford English DictionaryFootball