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Illustration by Lance Lekander

Word Nerd / The Idiomizer

In each issue, our Vocab Lab celebrates the weird, wild, and wonderful world of words.

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The Adventures of The Word Nerd    

Tyler Maxwell used to be a typical boy. But one day, a 10-pound dictionary fell on his head. Luckily, he survived. But now Tyler can use only the biggest, hardest words there are. His friends don’t understand him. Can you help?

Lance Lekander

"I laboriously hastened through the vast Sahara."

The Idiomizer 

Meet The Idiomizer —the superhero who turns simple words into powerful idioms. These phrases unite words, like a team, to take on a whole new meaning.

Jordy Can Get It Done!

Lance Lekander

Jordy: My science project is going to be a flop, Callie. I don’t think I can do it.

Callie: Of course you can, Jordy! Just remember, you . . .

This is a job for The Idiomizer!

Lance Lekander

The Idiomizer: Sure you can! You have the magic touch. You’ve got all the right stuff. It’ll be duck soup for you.

Jordy: OK, I’m more confident now. Thanks, Idiomizer!

This article was originally published in the December 2020 / January 2021 issue.

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