WORD DROPS by Paul Anthony Jones ( 9780826356567 ) - Books & Audio Books at Pickabook.co.uk

Item Details

Title:

WORD DROPS
A SPRINKLING OF LINGUISTIC CURIOSITIES

By:

Paul Anthony Jones

Format:

Paperback

List price:

£21.95

Our price:

£21.29

Discount:

3% off

You save:

£0.66

ISBN 10:

0826356567

ISBN 13:

9780826356567

Availability:

Last available stock.

Delivery rates

Stock:

Currently 1item in stock

Publisher:

UNIVERSITY OF NEW MEXICO PRESS

Pub. date:

29 February, 2016

Pages:

216

Description:

From aardvark to zenzizenzizenzic, Word Drops collects a thousand obscure words and language facts in one fascinating chain of word associations. Word Drops also uses an intriguing series of annotations to add background and historical context on everything from Anglo-Saxon cures for insanity to Samuel Pepys's cure for a hangover.

Synopsis:

From aardvark to zenzizenzizenzic, Word Drops collects a thousand obscure words and language facts in one fascinating chain of word associations. Did you know, for example, that scandal derives from the Latin for "stumbling block" and originally described a trap for a wild animal? In nineteenth-century slang a wolf trap was a corrupt casino. Casino means "little house" in Italian. Roulette means "little wheel" in French. A wheeler is someone who attends auctions to bid on items merely to increase their sale price. Such links take readers on an unexpected journey through linguistic oddities. Inspired by the popular @HaggardHawks Twitter account, Word Drops also uses an intriguing series of annotations to add background and historical context on everything from Anglo-Saxon cures for insanity to Samuel Pepys's cure for a hangover. This unique book will delight anyone who loves language, etymology, and word games.

Publication:

Imprint:

University of New Mexico Press

Returns:

Returnable

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AROUND THE WORLD IN 80 WORDS

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HAGGARD HAWKS AND PALTRY POLTROONS (HB)