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Phraseology: Thousands of Bizarre Origins, Unexpected Connections, and Fascinating Facts about English's Best Expressions [Paperback]

Barbara Kipfer (Author)
3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews) |
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Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 2008

The Amazing Secrets of the Phrases We Use Everyday

Phraseology is the ultimate collection of everything you never knew about the wonderful phrases found in the English language. It contains information about phrase history and etymology; unusual, lost, or uncommon phrases; how phrases are formed; and more than 7,000 facts about common English phrases.

Practical enough to be used as a reference book but so fun that every book lover will want to read it straight through, Phraseology contains such engrossing tidbits as:

  • ACROSS THE BOARD is an allusion to the board displaying the odds in a horse race
  • ARTESIAN WELL gets its name from Artois, where such wells were first made
  • BEST MAN originated in Scotland, where the groom kidnapped his bride with the aid of friends, including the toughest and bravest - the best man.

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Customers buy this book with The Thinker's Thesaurus: Sophisticated Alternatives to Common Words (Expanded Second Edition) by Peter E. Meltzer Paperback $15.02

Phraseology: Thousands of Bizarre Origins, Unexpected Connections, and Fascinating Facts about English's Best Expressions + The Thinker's Thesaurus: Sophisticated Alternatives to Common Words (Expanded Second Edition)
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Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Barbara Ann Kipfer, PhD is the author of many list and reference books. Barbara has an MPhil and PhD in Linguistics from University of Exeter, a PhD in Archaeology, an MA in Buddhist Studies from Greenwich University, and a BS in Physical Education from Valparaiso University. A lexicographer and part-time archaeologist, Barbara is the managing editor of Lexico LLC.

Product Details

  • Paperback: 320 pages
  • Publisher: Sourcebooks, Inc. (October 1, 2008)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 1402212879
  • ISBN-13: 978-1402212871
  • Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6.3 x 1 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #168,098 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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More About the Author

› Visit Amazon's Barbara Ann Kipfer Page
Barbara Ann Kipfer
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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews
30 of 30 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Phraseology is a dictionary of phrases, defining evrything from dermagraphism (a hickey) to wild card. Often, the definition is assumed to be known (as in Waldorff salad), and so the basic origin of the word is given. More often, though, a brief definition is given without giving any information as to its etmology. Whereas books such as Ballyhoo, Buckaroo, and Spuds: Ingenious Tales of Words and Their Origins will give a very detailed history of a few words, this book gives a cursory explanation for thousands of words (more than 7000 according to the back of the book). There were a number of aggrivating features to this book. First, I can get more information about word origins and even meanings from the OED. Second, the order of the words seems random. Sometimes the word is listed right where it ought to be (Waldorff salad is in the Ws) and other times, you have to guess (Quahog is under Hard Shelled Clam); there is little authority control. Finally, it's just not interesting to dip into. Most etymology books are either entertaining and brief or are very detailed. This, unfortunatly, is neither. It seems the author bit off more than she could chew. Rather than finding an index card worth of information on the words, she barely found a post-it note.
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20 of 20 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
It's a random list of often goofy, often infinitely obscure, often maddeningly incomplete, always completely unsupported or referenced, and sometimes downright fallacious or wrong definitions of words and phrases.
As far as I can tell, the editor got bored after the first few pages and dropped off to sleep (or stormed from the room in a fit of pique).

This should be a good "odd moments" book for reading while waiting at the doctor's office, or sitting you-know-where, but it's not. If you've even a modicum of practical knowledge, it will leave you scratching your head; one might wonder why the entry "sausage dog means dachshund" is interesting or surprising to anyone other than perhaps a shut-in five-year-old. What is really interesting, to me, is why she left "wiener dog" or "badger dog" (not to mention capital letters and punctuation) out of the equation.

Dr. Kipfer insists the phrase "free range" "is supposed to mean" (as opposed to "really means", which, I thought, was the whole purpose of the book) poultry allowed to roam free and "consuming only a vegetarian diet." I imagine the good doctor has never seen free-range chickens in action, because their diet is anything but vegetarian. (If this sort of thing does not bother you, then perhaps the run-on-without-a-cause "the display case for meat that is packaged at the grocery store and the self-service meat counter and the butcher's area the fresh meat counter" might give puzzle.

Oh, I could go on, but I might be accused of picking fly-poop out of black pepper (which phrase, along with "hen on a June bug" might have afforded some real interest). Truth be told, this book reads like a long walk on a short pier.
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24 of 28 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
My expectations of this book were that it would be an informative explanation of the origins of common phrases or, at least, a useful reference book. It turned out to be a disjointed pile of data with little or no information. It consists of a randomly selected group of words and phrases, each accompanied by a short, usually meaningless, note. Some notes are a partial definition, many are a somewhat pedantic lecture on proper grammatical usage, some are merely a date when the phrase (allegedly) first apeared. Many of the attempts to explain the meaning and/or origin of phrases are, in my opinion and experience, patently incorrect. In the spirit of fairness, the book may improve in later sections; I only read to the "C" entries before I threw the book across the room in frustration. The book was very effective at scaring the cat.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
informative phrases
This a good source for info about the origins of unusual phrases and expressions. A very good buy. Useful foer people interested in language.
Published 1 month ago by Susan F. Ehrlich
Great Reference!
This book is priceless . . . all those words and phrases which you have wondered about . . . their meaning, where they came from, and what do they mean? . . . Read more
Published 3 months ago by B. Clarke
Not at all what I though it would be
I found this book and thought it would be perfect for me to look through and learn some great and funny origins to phrases often used in our English culture. Read more
Published 4 months ago by A. Mack
Good Book
I have already reviewed this item and am very happy with it. Do not have anything to add to my previous review.
Published 5 months ago by Debra Gifford
Phaseology
Very good explanations of many words and phases used today and were used in the past. Reads like a dictonary but more entertaining.
Published 5 months ago by Gregory J. Schifferle
Lacking Information
I was looking forward to learning about the history of interesting phrases, and this book did not deliver. Read more
Published 6 months ago by Julie
Found it here for less
Saw this in a catalogue, but didn't want to pay the price. When this is the case I almost always find the item for less at amazon. I didn't love the book. Read more
Published 22 months ago by SUZANNE L. ARASIM
Phraseology
Phraseology is a fun and informative book. What a perfect gift for the trivia buff, a teacher, an inquisitive young person or just for the person who already thinks they know it... Read more
Published 23 months ago by Eric R. Weil
Didn't quite live up to the subtitle
Oh, Phraseology is a trivia buff's dream. Or anyone who loves words and language. My son is of the first persuasion. He loves books like this and promptly snagged it. Read more
Published on December 2, 2008 by Luanne Ollivier
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