A Million Words And Counting (Hardcover)

by Paul J.J. Payack (Author)
Key Phrases: political buzzwords, Global English, United States, New Orleans (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
From Babel to Babble . . . Everyone is Speaking English

In 2007, the English language passed the million-word mark. That shouldn't come as a surprise since over a billion Earthlings speak English (no one knows about other planets, but they probably speak it, too). That makes for a lot of word-coiners (neologists) out there. And where are all these new words coming from? Hollywood? Technology? The Internet? Corporate boardrooms? Youthspeak? How do world events--from tsunamis and hurricanes to political doublespeak and presidential linguistic bumbling--influence the words we use on a daily basis? What do e-mails, text messages, and emoticons contribute to the language?

Let WordMan Paul J.J. Payack take you on a global tour of English-speaking worlds--virtual and otherwise:

• From India, Singapore, and China, to Australia, the U.S. and the U.K.

• From film, television, fashion, music, politics, sports, games, business, technology and science

• From TV junkies, fashionistas and sports fans, to amateur historians and linguists

• And from every other source that contributes to the global tapestry of English

Get ready for a whirlwind tour of our increasingly global culture and how it becomes that way.

A Million Words? Fundoo!

Podcast, Chinglish, truthiness, crunk. Just a year or two ago, these words were gibberish to most English speakers. Today they pop up in everyday conversation worldwide, just four of the ten thousand new words added to the English language every year. Spurred by the universality of the Internet--where it is the de facto lingua franca--and the global reach of its media, English is growing at a rate unprecedented in its 1500-year history. Indeed, in the spring of 2007, the English word count surpassed a million--over ten times the number available in French.

At the crest of this linguistic tsunami surfs Paul J.J. Payack, aka the WordMan. As president of the Global Language Monitor, he has tracked the latest developments--the fascinating hybrids, the bizarre etymologies, the lasting malapropisms--in the language shared by two billion of the Earth's citizens. Aided by a worldwide network of similarly obsessed "language mavens" and armed with his own powerful word-counting algorithm, Payack ensures that no new English word falls from the tongue or marks the page without being counted toward the Million Word March.

A Million Words and Counting is a celebration of the vast variety and ever-evolving expressiveness of humanity's most universal language. Fun and informative, this guide is a joyful exploration of English as it spreads across the globe, as it is spoken today, and as it expands into the future. Each entertaining chapter of this ambitious linguistic survey examines another source of new English, including Hollywood, youth culture, other languages, corporate boardrooms, and tongue-tied presidents. An engaging compendium of English-language facts and factoids, this is a trivia lover's goldmine and a logophile's playground.

About the Author
Paul J.J. Payack is a Harvard-educated word maven who is president of the Global Language Monitor and yourDictionary.com. The two sites he operates receive 30 million page views a month and are used as resources by major universities and other institutions worldwide. A well-known media commentator and expert on culture and language, Payack has appeared on the BBC, CNN, National Public Radio, ABC, CBS, and NBC. He currently resides with his wife and family in San Diego.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 224 pages
• Publisher: Citadel (May 1, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0806528575
• ISBN-13: 978-0806528571
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #731,228 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Pseudo-scientific nonsense, November 12, 2008

By	S. Karsten "Cogito42" (Minneapolis, MN USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I strongly recommend against buying this book. Paul Payack is not a linguist. His "Predictive Qualities Indicator," a proprietary algorithm that supposedly analyzes language in media, is nothing more than a common word count tool with a rip-off of the Flesch-Kincaid Readability test. Visit his web site for yourself (www.languagemonitor.com); he cites no sources (other than himself), provides no evidence for his claims and misuses linguistic terminology. The worst part: He likes to talk a lot about politicians and the passive voice. On the "'08 Election" page of his web site, he gives the sentence "There will be setbacks" as an example of passive voice. That is NOT passive voice; It's an active-voice existential progressive construction. Payack fancies himself as "The Word Man," but he can't distinguish between passive and progressive voice.

0 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars GREAT READ!, November 18, 2008

By	Cristina Salmastrelli "cris" (ny, ny) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This book was such a wonderful read. With every page, I learned something new about the English Language. I had no idea that all these "different" cultures spread out over the globe are connected in such a basic way with the English language! This book was filled wonderful facts, insightful comments, fun tidbits, and hilarious "'isms."

Everyone must read the Bushisms. I still do not understand how he was out president for eight years, but these funny "'isms" that came out of it, are the necessary laughs we needed!

Also, there are little gray boxes throughout the book that have extra facts. Everyone must check out the "not of shred of truth" gray box. I am a big history buff, so this information was right up my alley. You truly do learn such wonderful information in this book!

My roommate works in the financial world. So after readying the section about "corporate speak," I tried my new found knowledge on her. I said to her, as we were walking by something on sale, "Oh, Emilie we should get that low hanging fruit." She was shocked that I was correctly speaking her lingo!

Everyone must also check out the food section. A must read! My final comment is: Its seems so backwards that we want the biggest in food sizes, yet the smallest in clothes sizes.

Did everyone know that there are different definitions to what a billion is?!?!? Read this book and you will found out the details!

This book is so much fun to read and such a good purchase. This is definitely a must have! You find out such wonderful information about words, names, numbers, everything! Go out and buy this book. It should be in everyone's book club. A wonderful discussion topic!


Everyone, please have a wonderful Wednesday tomorrow, including Woden, King of the Northern Gods. For all of you that have yet to read the book, Woden is the God Wednesday is named after. Go and buy the book and you will know the rest of the days of the week!