Customer Reviews

The Endangered English Dictionary: Bodacious Words Your Dictionary Forgot

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Although it stretches the imagination that such words as "infrangelic" and "mysot" can be casually used in day to day conversation, the words garnered by Mr. Grambs are just plain fun. Even for people with only a casual interest in English or writing will find this book strangely compelling. It's a book that is just a hit or a miss. My family is filled with big readers. My father found it boring. My mother bought her own copy within a couple of days. My brother put it down in a minute. My sister-law read it almost straight through. The book will allow you to almost always get the last "word."

Of the dozens of books I own on obscure, bizarre, and fascinating words, The Endangered English Dictionary is probably my favorite. David Grambs does not merely include obscure terms that have fallen into desuetude. Instead, he provides unusual words that are highly useful even today, be they employed in thought alone or in speech. I was in awe of our wonderful language when I began to read this book. It's the perfect gift for that sesquipedalian verbivore you know and love.

With the exception of the word "bodacious" (perhaps because a Chicago radio personality called himself "Bodacious So-and-So", and I found him annoying beyond measure, this is a terrific book. It's strength is that it has a reverse glossary, so that it functions, in a way, as a thesaurus. If you want an archaic word that pertains to acting, you'd never find it without a reverse glossary. With it, you find "roscian". Roscius was a roman actor who died around 67 bc, so "roscian" refers to certain styles of acting that reflect his emotive techniques.

Also, just flipping through the pages is fun. You find words jump out at you.

sizzard: unbearably humid heat
eupsychics: good education
cymotrichous: having wavy hair

Most importantly, the author uses the word in a sentence fragment, so that we know not only its definition, but its intended usage.

This is a great book for finding some of the most colorful and intersting words you will ever hear. The problem with learning the words is that some of them are so articlate and descriptive yet no one will understand you when you use them. This of course can lead to bouts of frustration. What a shame to have such great words yet not be able to use them.
The book is very accessible and readible due to the larger type size, nice font and cogent definitions.
Now for a personal note to anyone who wants to read on: I bought this book while in Graduate School at Andrews University in MI. I was taking the most boring of all boring classes being instructed by a teacher who was pulled in at the last minute to teach a class he knew nothing about. While the boring lectures continued day after day as so many cars on a train I read this book cover to cover and made note cards of all the interesting words. Now I have easy access to all the words that struck me most. And for amusement during certain verbivorous moments I like to review and ponder.