The Big Book of Filth: 6500 Sex Slang Words and Phrases (Reference) [Hardcover]

Jonathon Green (Author), Kipper Williams (Illustrator)

Book Description

Series: Reference | Publication Date: June 2000

The ideal companion for the lexically incorrect. Here are hundreds of words and phrases you didn't know, some you probably didn't want to know - and words and phrases for sexual practices you had no idea even existed.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Jonathon Green is Britain's leading lexicographer of slang. His many credits include the Macmillan Dictionary of Contemporary Slang, Slang Down the Ages, Chasing the Sun: Dictionary-Makers and the Dictionaries They Made, The Cassell Dictionary of Slang (published to great acclaim in December 1998), and most recently, the best-selling Big Book of Filth, a survey of 6500 sex slang words and phrases. Jonathon Green lives in North London.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: Sterling Publishing (June 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0304353507
• ISBN-13: 978-0304353507
• Product Dimensions: 6.1 x 4.6 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,283,886 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #41 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Reference > Dictionaries & Thesauruses > Slang & Idioms

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars funny reference for the lexicon geek, November 26, 2003

By 

Shelley Gammon "Geek" (Kaufman, Texas USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Big Book of Filth: 6500 Sex Slang Words and Phrases (Reference) (Hardcover)

If you like reference books like I do, you can never have enough lexicons at your disposal. I thought I knew a lot of the slang referring to things normally covered by bathing suits, but I was mistaken. Tons of stuff I didn't even imagine. Some of the terms are 19th Century slang and are no longer used... and the reason for their use is not always obvious or explained.

The few sparse illustrations are absolutely hilarious, but they are just cartoons to pepper the book, not diagrams.

My less than perfect rating is due to the lack of true history behind the terms, especially those from the 1960s and earlier... just citing that it was coined in a particular year.

Also, there are terms I have heard repeatedly on TV & movies that were not cited here. There are no references as to where they collected their data, so the book becomes more of a funny bathroom humor compendium instead of a reliable lexicon.

Whenever you need an arsenal of foul words, or you need to look up that term you just overheard your teenager say on the phone, however, this is a handy reference for those of us less informed in the realm of lockerroom banter.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Big Book of Filth, August 17, 2011

By 

Sandra Lea Rice - See all my reviews

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This review is from: The Big Book of Filth: 6500 Sex Slang Words and Phrases (Hardcover)

I'm a writer of historical romance and this book was recommended as a resource material. It is exactly what I was looking for.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not the best collection of its type, April 8, 2003

By 

TammyJo Eckhart "TammyJo Eckhart" (Bloomington, Indiana United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Big Book of Filth: 6500 Sex Slang Words and Phrases (Reference) (Hardcover)

The title is a bit of a joke because the book is actually quite small in the physical sense. Basically it is a list of words (primarily English language words) that seem to fit into a range of categories that can be general (male parts) or very specific (tasty terms). Some lists are set up as charts that focus on the play with one phrase or rhyme systems. The picture throughout could be funny or distracting depending on your personal taste -- I found them a bit of both. Once more we see that in the English language words relating to women's bodies and sexuality are fewer and less "active". It could be fun to read with friends but since no real definitions are offered for the terms, not very helpful to writers I think.