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Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
Garg, logophilic founder of wordsmith.org and the 600,000-subscriber A.Word.A.Day email newsletter, jam-packs his latest good-natured, reader-friendly book (after Another Word A Day) with terms exotic and domestic, lessons in etymology and surprising tricks of the linguist trade, such as the fact that "as a copyright trap... encyclopedia publishers are known to add a fictitious biography or two to their works." Divided into several short chapters, each with a unique focus, Garg covers topics like the "language mint" successes ("Grok," "Scofflaw," "Teetotal"), words that come from fictional character names ("Prufrockian," "Throttlebottom," "Zelig"), food-speak ("Epicurean," "Julienne," "Postprandial") and units of measurement ("Dol," "Millihelen," "Miner's Inch"). "Lexperts," as Garg calls them, will enjoy testing themselves with 77 trivial pursuit-style questions, though readers may bemoan the lack of a comprehensive index. Otherwise, Garg's latest little gem will be enjoyed by anyone with a thing for words, language and history.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Product Description
From the creator of the popular A.Word.A.Day e-mail newsletter
A collection of some of the most interesting stories and fascinating origins behind more than 300 words, names, and terms by the founder of WordSmith.org.
Did you know:
There’s a word for the pleasant smell that accompanies the first rain after a dry spell? Petrichor, combining petros (Greek for stone) and ichor (the fluid that flows in the veins of Greek gods).
An illeist is one who refers to oneself in the third person.
There’s a word for feigning lack of interest in something while actually desiring it: accismus.
For any aspiring deipnosophist (a good conversationalist at meals) or devoted Philomath (a lover of learning), this anthology of entertaining etymology is an ideal way to have fun while getting smarter.
A collection of some of the most interesting stories and fascinating origins behind more than 300 words, names, and terms by the founder of WordSmith.org.
Did you know:
There’s a word for the pleasant smell that accompanies the first rain after a dry spell? Petrichor, combining petros (Greek for stone) and ichor (the fluid that flows in the veins of Greek gods).
An illeist is one who refers to oneself in the third person.
There’s a word for feigning lack of interest in something while actually desiring it: accismus.
For any aspiring deipnosophist (a good conversationalist at meals) or devoted Philomath (a lover of learning), this anthology of entertaining etymology is an ideal way to have fun while getting smarter.
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We often believe movie actors have fascinating lives. Read the first page Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
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United States, Old English, Old French, Grub Street, New York City, The Pickwick Papers, Mark Twain, Samuel Johnson, Martin Chuzzlewit, Heath Robinson, James Madison, Samuel Goldwyn, George Baker, New Yorker, Benjamin Franklin, King Midas Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
We often believe movie actors have fascinating lives. Read the first page Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
loan translation, word originated, longest word Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
United States, Old English, Old French, Grub Street, New York City, The Pickwick Papers, Mark Twain, Samuel Johnson, Martin Chuzzlewit, Heath Robinson, James Madison, Samuel Goldwyn, George Baker, New Yorker, Benjamin Franklin, King Midas Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
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