The Oxford Dictionary of Word Histories by Glynnis Chantrell

The Oxford Dictionary of Word Histories by Glynnis Chantrell

This dictionary describes the origins and sense development of thousands of core words of the English language. A key feature is the inclusion of a large number of idioms and popular beliefs with the dates and details of how and when they came about.

This useful book explains the meaning of English words, but only in the course of giving a very concise history, uncluttered by quotations and examples of usage, of how they came to mean what they doLook up 'egregious', for instance, and you discover that its current meaning of 'remarkably bad' has somehow morphed from an original meaning of 'remarkably good', probably via an ironic usage of the former. In general, it's fascinating to be reminded of how many English words have a root in Old English. And perhaps surprising to find how many 'slang' usages which seem very modern actually originate in the 1920s and 1930s ('funny money', and 'fuzz' meaning police, for instance). It's both a valuable resource for reference, and almost endlessly intriguing to dip into in a serendipitous way.

Glynnis Chantrell is Senior Editor in the English Language Teaching department at OUP. For several years she was Senior Editor in the Dictionaries department, working on many books including the Concise Oxford Dictionary (9th edn), and the New Oxford Dictionary of English (responsible for Word Histories). Glynnis taught modern languges for many years, and is multi-lingual. She has taught at every level, including adults.

SKU	Unavailable
ISBN 13	9780198631217
ISBN 10	0198631219
Title	The Oxford Dictionary of Word Histories
Author	Glynnis Chantrell
Condition	Unavailable
Binding Type	Hardback
Publisher	Oxford University Press
Year published	2002-07-01
Number of pages	568
Cover note	Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.