Never Enough Words: How Americans Invented Expressions as Ingenious, Ornery, and Colorful as Themsel ves [Hardcover]

Jeffrey McQuain (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 30, 1999

Jeffery McQuain explores the interconnections between the American character and history and the evolution of the American language. From the humorous -- the lawyer bird, named for its long bill -- to the sonorous -- whippoorwills and katydids, named for the sounds they make -- he demonstrates how our distinctive American traits have shaped and been echoed in our language, and, in so doing, demonstrates the fact that language is a living thing.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

You are what you speak. Jeffrey McQuain (Shakespeare scholar and researcher for William Safire's language column) takes the Freudian approach to American colloquialisms. He delves into hundreds of terms, such as thank-you-ma'ams (road ruts or obstructions), ant killers (feet and ankles), and nose paint (liquor), to gain a deeper understanding not just of the linguistic nuances of the words themselves but of the culture that created them and the personality of the language itself. Examining Americanisms such as pulling up stakes and belittle from Colonial days through modern expressions like blamestorming and snail mail, McQuain discusses terms that denote the independence, practicality, and orneriness of the American spirit; the conformity, creativity, directness, and indirectness of the American mind; and the pride, passion, prejudice, and indignation of the American heart.

The title refers to a conversation between Noah Webster and British naval officer Basil Hall in the early 19th century. Asked why he looked down on American coinages, Captain Hall explained, "There are words enough already." In this erudite linguistic exploration into the cultural and historic significance of American English, McQuain celebrates the variety and creativity of the living language. He concludes that there will never be enough words. --Stephanie Gold

From Library Journal

McQuain, guest columnist for William Safire's "On Language" column in the New York Times Magazine, surveys "memorable terms" from the "Pathfinder" of the 1840s to the Pathfinder mission to Mars. What he describes as a "systematic explanation" of the historical progress of the American language is divided into three chapters that only partially suggest their content, referring broadly to the person/ spirit, the intellect/mind, and the emotion/heart of Americans and their words. Unfortunately, this narrative format is not user-friendly. The words and their background stories are fascinating, but the book would have benefited enormously from either an index or a different arrangement. Furthermore, the text suffers from the misuse of some words (e.g., "Canadian" goose rather than "Canada" goose) and redundancy (e.g., the "urban legend" featuring alligators in city sewers appears twice within the "tall tales" section). Since the book is well researched, it seems a pity the material isn't better edited and more accessible.ACathy Sabol, Northern Virginia Community Coll., Herndon
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 278 pages
• Publisher: Random House Reference; 1st edition (March 30, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0679458042
• ISBN-13: 978-0679458043
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 1.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,524,447 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Never enough words, June 17, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Never Enough Words: How Americans Invented Expressions as Ingenious, Ornery, and Colorful as Themsel ves (Hardcover)

From the introduction, where CONFISCATE is mentioned as an example of an extended earlier English word, and then the author provides NO details, P xxi,the book diappoints. By page 46,where THE WHOLE NINE YARDS is referenced, is it clear that the book is a waste of time. It tells you THE WHOLE NINE YARDS has "literally dozens of etymololgies have been suggested" then states "most of which are provably wrong", but fails to give the basis of the proof and simply moves on like a puff piece book. Skip it.