Totally Weird and Wonderful Words

Totally Weird and Wonderful Words
Author: Erin McKean
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 298
Release: 2006-10-23
Genre: Reference
ISBN: 0199886032

Do you know what a snollygoster is? Would you eat something called a muktuk? Do you know anyone who engages in onolatry? Impress your friends and pepper your dinner party conversations with such nuggets as gobemouche, mumpsimus, and cachinnate. You can learn about all of these bizarre and beautiful words and many more in Totally Weird and Wonderful Words. Offering a potpourri of colorful and fascinating words compiled by noted lexicographer Erin McKean, it contains hundreds of definitions, and has been updated to include two new essays, with over 150 words new to this edition. Written in a clear and conversational style, the book contains full-page cartoon illustrations by Roz Chast and Danny Shanahan. Featuring hundreds of words guaranteed to amuse and astonish, this is a book that will appeal to logophiles everywhere. It also features a bibliography of Oxford's dictionaries and a guide to creating your own unusual words correctly from Greek and Latin roots.

Weird and Wonderful Words

Weird and Wonderful Words
Author: Erin McKean
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
Total Pages: 146
Release: 2002
Genre: Humor
ISBN: 0195159055

Lists the meaning of hundreds of bizarre and unusual words and includes a guide to coining new words.

Wordcatcher

Wordcatcher
Author: Phil Cousineau
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Total Pages: 331
Release: 2010-03-15
Genre: Reference
ISBN: 1573445509

Who knew that the great country of Canada is named for a mistake? How about "bedswerver," the best Elizabethan insult to hurl at a cheating boyfriend? By exploring the delightful back stories of the 250 words in Wordcatcher, readers are lured by language and entangled in etymologies. Author Phil Cousineau takes us on a tour into the obscure territory of word origins with great erudition and endearing curiosity. The English poet W. H. Auden was once asked to teach a poetry class, and when 200 students applied to study with him, he only had room for 20 of them. When asked how he chose his students, he said he picked the ones who actually loved words. So too, with this book — it takes a special wordcatcher to create a treasure chest of remarkable words and their origins, and any word lover will relish the stories that Cousineau has discovered.

Is That a Word?

Is That a Word?
Author: David Bukszpan
Publisher: Chronicle Books
Total Pages: 178
Release: 2012-09-19
Genre: Games & Activities
ISBN: 1452108242

Scrabble® aficionados may know that both "Brr" and "Brrr" are legitimate plays, but what about everyday names like Peter, Carl, and Marge? They're not listed as proper nouns, but they are certainly playable. For lovers of Scrabble®, Bananagrams®, and Words with Friends®, this lively guide helps readers make the most out of word games, packed with new ways to remember the best words alongside tips for improving game play and much more. Part strategy guide and part celebration of all things wordy, this collection of facts, tips, and surprising lists of playable words will instruct and delight the letterati.

Other-Wordly

Other-Wordly
Author: Yee-Lum Mak
Publisher: Chronicle Books
Total Pages: 62
Release: 2016-10-11
Genre: Reference
ISBN: 1452163111

Discover words to surprise, delight, and enamor. Learn terms for the sunlight that filters through the leaves of trees, for dancing awkwardly but with relish, and for the look shared by two people who each wish the other would speak first. Other-Wordly is an irresistible ebook for lovers of words and those lost for words alike.

Bethumpt the Best and Worst of the Wördos

Bethumpt the Best and Worst of the Wördos
Author: Jerry Reedy
Publisher: Xlibris Corporation
Total Pages: 183
Release: 2019-10-18
Genre: Reference
ISBN: 1796057797

“Bethumpt The Best and Worst of the Wördos” is a collaborative effort of Jerry Reedy, Ph.D. and Professor Emeritus of Classical Languages and Fred Webber, B.A., Journalism. The authors hope this book will give readers an understanding of the origin of words and their past and present meanings and usage. They also hope readers will enjoy the book. It’s not intended to be pedantic or instructional... just interesting and sometimes fun. Both authors belong to Wördos, a group of people who meet monthly to talk about the often careless use of English in the media. We believe that the failure to write clearly jeopardizes understanding and believability, and that writing well is important in establishing credibility and competence. There’s more about the Wördos in the book. And speaking of the book, if you’re wondering about the origin of “Bethumpt,” you’ll have to buy the book to find out!

The Hundred Dresses

The Hundred Dresses
Author: Erin McKean
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA
Total Pages: 229
Release: 2013-06-11
Genre: Design
ISBN: 1608199762

"The best-selling author of The Secret Lives of Dresses presents a visual A-to-Z reference profiling iconic vintage and modern dresses, combining evocative four-color illustrations with lively assessments of each depicted style, their famous wearers and typical accessories."

Chartography

Chartography
Author: Stephen Wildish
Publisher: Summersdale
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2016-09-08
Genre: Games & Activities
ISBN: 9781849539197

This super stylish book, packed with weird and wonderful visual information about everything, from how to make the perfect cup of tea to a statistical breakdown of the hokey-cokey, is guaranteed to entertain and help you look at things in a completely new way.

ElderSpeak

ElderSpeak
Author: James L. Reynolds, MD
Publisher: iUniverse
Total Pages: 495
Release: 2014
Genre: Medical
ISBN: 1491705108

There are many words relating to old age, aging, and the elderly, and this compendium of words seeks to help you understand almost two thousand of them. Most of these words are unusual, rare, obsolete, archaic, wonderful, marvelous, arcane, and even preposterous. All of them apply to the aged, a group that makes up an increasing portion of the population-particularly in the United States, Europe, and Japan. Here are just a few of the interesting words you'll learn: - Cenotaph: a monument erected as a memorial to a dead person or dead people buried elsewhere, especially those killed fighting a war - Lethonomia: a tendency to forget, or inability to recall, names - Oligoria: disinterest in former friends or hobbies Listed alphabetically with pronunciation keys, the words are categorized under forty-eight headings. For example, in the "end-of-life" category, you'll find the word feuillemorte, which is the wan, yellow color of death. Under "retirement," you'll find ecesis, which is the acclimatization to retirement, and Opagefaengris, a prison for retired male criminals in Singen, Germany. Boost your vocabulary, indulge in a love of language, and improve the way you communicate with seniors and medical professionals. It starts with learning ElderSpeak.

Machine of Death

Machine of Death
Author: Ryan North
Publisher: Machines of Death LLC
Total Pages: 468
Release: 2010
Genre: Fiction
ISBN: 0982167121

MACHINE OF DEATH tells thirty-four different stories about people who know how they will die. Prepare to have your tears jerked, your spine tingled, your funny bone tickled, your mind blown, your pulse quickened, or your heart warmed. Or better yet, simply prepare to be surprised. Because even when people do have perfect knowledge of the future, there's no telling exactly how things will turn out.