The F-Word [Paperback]

Jesse Sheidlower (Editor), Ross MacDonald (Illustrator), Roy Blount Jr. (Foreword)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 3, 1995

This is the book everyone had waited for.  Here, in one convenient, comprehensive volume, is the complete story of the word still considered the most vulgar utterance in the English language.  Rather than tired clichés or graceless jokes, The F-Word contains page after page of actual, uncensored examples of the word in all its varied and robust use, from its first appearance in English in the fifteenth century.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Here, in one convenient, comprehensive volume, is the complete story of the word still considered the most vulgar utterance in the English language. You guessed it--it's the F word.

From the Publisher

"...the first dictionary devoted to a single word, albeit an extraordinarily malleable one."
--New York Magazine

"...The F-Word is really a novelty. What makes it so interesting, if not thrilling, to grownups is the sheer volume of its usages..."
--Time

"...hard to read without smiling."
--Minneapolis Star Tribune

"...not for your mother."
--Columbus Dispatch

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 232 pages
• Publisher: Random House Reference; 1st edition (October 3, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0679764275
• ISBN-13: 978-0679764274
• Product Dimensions: 7.1 x 4.7 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,983,441 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #79 in Books > Education & Reference > Dictionaries & Thesauruses > Foreign Language > Dutch

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A fascinating look at a well-worn word., March 24, 1998

By 

Paul Cowan (Melbourne, VIC Australia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The F-Word (Paperback)

This book is certainly different, if nothing else. It contains a distressingly complete etymology of everyone's favourite word, dating back to the 1600s.

All sorts of phrases containing 'the magic word' are included and referenced, as well as some words of equivalent meaning, some euphemisms for it ('freak', for example), and some great abbreviations (eg 'BUFF').

A great range of sources are used, from James Joyce to Madonna to Usenet erotica newsgroup posts. All serve to illustrate the point that the 'F-word' is one of the more versatile words in our language, and can fit into virtually any situation.

All in all, it's a fascinating and funny read for anyone interested in the English language, and I'm sure it says something that the history of a word such as this is so much more easily documented than probably any other word.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars F'in fabulous reference for the lexicon geek, July 9, 2004

By 

Shelley Gammon "Geek" (Kaufman, Texas USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The F-Word (Paperback)

Thanks to ADHD, I have a hard time focusing for any length of time on the written word, but I love reference books and I love the English language. I have numerous lexicons from American Slang, to quotations, scientific dictionaries, etc. This one is not for the kids, but it has come in helpful a number of times.

I used to feel pretty hip, but now that my teen years are far behind me, I no longer know everything - and I am really feeling like an old codger when I hear a new phrase on TV or in a movie I've never heard before.

If someone has remolded the "F-word" into another word or phrase, it's in this little dictionary. Almost an encyclopedia of the F-word. Each entry gives an approximate date of usage (some usages are timeless, and used for over a hundred years, some are over a hundred years old and just aren't used at all. If the phrase or word first showed up in a book or movie, that reference is also given. Examples are cited and the origins of how each word evolved (as appropriate) are also noted.

As needed, a listing will note if it is a colloquialism for an age group, racial group, sexual lifestyle group, etc.

I had no idea what Stevie Wonder's song "Bad Mamma Jamma" meant until reading the definition in this text!

The illustrations are clever, and surprisingly not vulgar, considering what book they are in. This is far more than just a snicker-fest - although you can sit down and read it and giggle here & there, it is truly a reference book for American slang at its worst.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars the first and last word on this world-class Word. . ., November 1, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: The F-Word (Paperback)

The F Word. . .proves to be a rare item indeed: a comprehensive, vastly eclectic, tongue-in-cheek serious treatment that has to be the first and last word on this world-class Word. For the curious layperson, it will be a source of amazement and information, a good deal of it funny.

As reviewed by Benedict B. Kimmelmann, in the Summer 1996 (Vol. XXIII, No. 1) issue of VERBATIM, The Language Quarterly.