Word Myths

Word Myths
Author: David Wilton
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 240
Release: 2008-11-06
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 0199740836

Do you "know" that posh comes from an acronym meaning "port out, starboard home"? That "the whole nine yards" comes from (pick one) the length of a WWII gunner's belt; the amount of fabric needed to make a kilt; a sarcastic football expression? That Chicago is called "The Windy City" because of the bloviating habits of its politicians, and not the breeze off the lake? If so, you need this book. David Wilton debunks the most persistently wrong word histories, and gives, to the best of our actual knowledge, the real stories behind these perennially mis-etymologized words. In addition, he explains why these wrong stories are created, disseminated, and persist, even after being corrected time and time again. What makes us cling to these stories, when the truth behind these words and phrases is available, for the most part, at any library or on the Internet? Arranged by chapters, this book avoids a dry A-Z format. Chapters separate misetymologies by kind, including The Perils of Political Correctness (picnics have nothing to do with lynchings), Posh, Phat Pommies (the problems of bacronyming--the desire to make every word into an acronym), and CANOE (which stands for the Conspiracy to Attribute Nautical Origins to Everything). Word Myths corrects long-held and far-flung examples of wrong etymologies, without taking the fun out of etymology itself. It's the best of both worlds: not only do you learn the many wrong stories behind these words, you also learn why and how they are created--and what the real story is.

The Language of the Blues

The Language of the Blues
Author: Debra Devi
Publisher: True Nature Books
Total Pages: 290
Release: 2012
Genre: History
ISBN: 9781624071850

A comprehensive dictionary of blues lyrics invites listeners to interpret what they hear in blues songs and blues culture, including excerpts from original interviews with Dr. John, Bonnie Raitt, Hubert Sumlin, Buddy Guy, and many others.

Cassell's Dictionary of Slang

Cassell's Dictionary of Slang
Author: Jonathon Green
Publisher: Sterling Publishing Company, Inc.
Total Pages: 1600
Release: 2005
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 9780304366361

With its unparalleled coverage of English slang of all types (from 18th-century cant to contemporary gay slang), and its uncluttered editorial apparatus, Cassell's Dictionary of Slang was warmly received when its first edition appeared in 1998. 'Brilliant.' said Mark Lawson on BBC2's The Late Review; 'This is a terrific piece of work - learned, entertaining, funny, stimulating' said Jonathan Meades in The Evening Standard.But now the world's best single-volume dictionary of English slang is about to get even better. Jonathon Green has spent the last seven years on a vast project: to research in depth the English slang vocabulary and to hunt down and record written instances of the use of as many slang words as possible. This has entailed trawling through more than 4000 books - plus song lyrics, TV and movie scripts, and many newspapers and magazines - for relevant material. The research has thrown up some fascinating results

Endangered Phrases

Endangered Phrases
Author: Steven D. Price
Publisher: Skyhorse Publishing Inc.
Total Pages: 225
Release: 2011-06-22
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 161608247X

Phrases and idioms that don t deserve to be ancient...

Blow the Candle Out (c)

Blow the Candle Out (c)
Author:
Publisher: University of Arkansas Press
Total Pages: 412
Release:
Genre: Music
ISBN: 9781610750769

Unprintable Ozark Folksongs and Folklore, Volume II, Folk Rhymes and Other Lore

Kiplinger's Personal Finance

Kiplinger's Personal Finance
Author:
Publisher:
Total Pages: 190
Release: 1998-08
Genre:
ISBN:

The most trustworthy source of information available today on savings and investments, taxes, money management, home ownership and many other personal finance topics.

The New Partridge Dictionary of Slang and Unconventional English

The New Partridge Dictionary of Slang and Unconventional English
Author: Tom Dalzell
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 864
Release: 2015-06-26
Genre: Foreign Language Study
ISBN: 1317372522

Booklist Top of the List Reference Source The heir and successor to Eric Partridge's brilliant magnum opus, The Dictionary of Slang and Unconventional English, this two-volume New Partridge Dictionary of Slang and Unconventional English is the definitive record of post WWII slang. Containing over 60,000 entries, this new edition of the authoritative work on slang details the slang and unconventional English of the English-speaking world since 1945, and through the first decade of the new millennium, with the same thorough, intense, and lively scholarship that characterized Partridge's own work. Unique, exciting and, at times, hilariously shocking, key features include: unprecedented coverage of World English, with equal prominence given to American and British English slang, and entries included from Australia, New Zealand, Canada, India, South Africa, Ireland, and the Caribbean emphasis on post-World War II slang and unconventional English published sources given for each entry, often including an early or significant example of the term’s use in print. hundreds of thousands of citations from popular literature, newspapers, magazines, movies, and songs illustrating usage of the headwords dating information for each headword in the tradition of Partridge, commentary on the term’s origins and meaning New to this edition: A new preface noting slang trends of the last five years Over 1,000 new entries from the US, UK and Australia New terms from the language of social networking Many entries now revised to include new dating, new citations from written sources and new glosses The New Partridge Dictionary of Slang and Unconventional English is a spectacular resource infused with humour and learning – it’s rude, it’s delightful, and it’s a prize for anyone with a love of language.

The Language of the Blues from Alcorub to Zuzu

The Language of the Blues from Alcorub to Zuzu
Author: Debra DeSalvo
Publisher: Random House Digital, Inc.
Total Pages: 200
Release: 2006
Genre: Music
ISBN:

The Language of the Blues explores the origins and meanings of the language of the blues - ranging in alphabetical order from words that have infiltrated the American mind, like mojo and boogie, to more obscure terms like woofin (verbal boasting) and mootie (marijuana), which have resurfaced in today's hip hop hits. Accompanying blues terms and their definitions are lively and informative profiles of many of the blues' most legendary artists, including Robert Johnson, Bessie Smith, Sonny Boy Williamson, Willie Dixon, and Bonnie Raitt. Occasionally raunchy and often surprising, this book is sure to be both informative and wildly entertaining to jazz and blues aficionados worldwide.

North Carolina Reports

North Carolina Reports
Author: North Carolina. Supreme Court
Publisher:
Total Pages: 960
Release: 1952
Genre: Law reports, digests, etc
ISBN:

Cases argued and determined in the Supreme Court of North Carolina.