Ballyhoo, Buckaroo, and Spuds: Ingenious Tales of Words and Their Origins - read free eBook in online reader or directly download on the web page. Select files or add your book in reader. Download and read online ebook Ballyhoo, Buckaroo, and Spuds: Ingenious Tales of Words and Their Origins write by Michael Quinion. This book was released on 2006-03. Ballyhoo, Buckaroo, and Spuds: Ingenious Tales of Words and Their Origins available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle.
Ballyhoo, Buckaroo, and Spuds
Ballyhoo, Buckaroo, and Spuds - read free eBook in online reader or directly download on the web page. Select files or add your book in reader. Download and read online ebook Ballyhoo, Buckaroo, and Spuds write by Michael Quinion. This book was released on 2006-03-14. Ballyhoo, Buckaroo, and Spuds available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. The cat's pajamas, the bee's knees, and the whole nine yards rolled into one, this true feast for word lovers skewers commonly accepted word-origin myths and etymological folktales. Writing with flair and authority, word maven and Oxford English Dictionary contributor Michael Quinion shows us that the real story behind a word or phrase is often much stranger than the commonly accepted one. With this book in your arsenal, you'll have the last word in every word-lover's game of one-upmanship. So if you've ever wondered why we utter such oddities as "raining cats and dogs," "I couldn't care less," or "twenty-three skidoo," this one's for you. No ballyhoo!
The Complete Idiot's Guide to Weird Word Origins
The Complete Idiot's Guide to Weird Word Origins - read free eBook in online reader or directly download on the web page. Select files or add your book in reader. Download and read online ebook The Complete Idiot's Guide to Weird Word Origins write by Paul McFedries. This book was released on 2008-08-05. The Complete Idiot's Guide to Weird Word Origins available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Get ready to chew the fat. This engaging, humorous new book explains the not-so-common origins of such commonly used phrases as “apple-pie order,” “chew the fat,” and “hat trick.” Presented in a fun, easy-to-read style, it provides entertaining insight on metaphorical phrases, weird words, and strange expressions and takes readers on a journey through the bizarre and eccentric origins that make up our everyday speech. • Word books have gained in popularity not just with students and linguaphiles, but with a general population interested in the fascinating development of our language. • Contains back stories for 500 intriguing words and phrases. • Fun to flip through and also fun to read cover to cover.
BALLYHOO BUCKAROO & SPUDS
BALLYHOO BUCKAROO & SPUDS - read free eBook in online reader or directly download on the web page. Select files or add your book in reader. Download and read online ebook BALLYHOO BUCKAROO & SPUDS write by Quinion M. This book was released on 2004-10-17. BALLYHOO BUCKAROO & SPUDS available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. The real story of a word or phrase’s origin and evolution is often much stranger—and much more humorous—than the commonly accepted one; the many entries will certainly leave you “happy as a clam.” Happy as a clam? Really, what’s so happy about being a clam? The saying makes much more sense when it’s paired with its missing second half: “at high water.” Now a clam at high water is a safe clam, and thus a happy clam. From the bawdy to the sublime, Quinion’s explanations and delightful asides truly prove that the “proof is in the pudding.”
The Hidden History of Coined Words
The Hidden History of Coined Words - read free eBook in online reader or directly download on the web page. Select files or add your book in reader. Download and read online ebook The Hidden History of Coined Words write by Ralph Keyes. This book was released on 2021-02-19. The Hidden History of Coined Words available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Successful word-coinages--those that stay in currency for a good long time--tend to conceal their beginnings. We take them at face value and rarely when and where they were first minted. Engaging, illuminating, and authoritative, Ralph Keyes's The Hidden History of Coined Words explores the etymological underworld of terms and expressions and uncovers plenty of hidden gems. He also finds some fascinating patterns, such as that successful neologisms are as likely to be created by chance as by design. A remarkable number of new words were coined whimsically, originally intended to troll or taunt. Knickers, for example, resulted from a hoax; big bang from an insult. Casual wisecracking produced software, crowdsource, and blog. More than a few resulted from happy accidents, such as typos, mistranslations, and mishearing (bigly and buttonhole), or from being taken entirely out of context (robotics). Neologizers (a Thomas Jefferson coinage) include not just scholars and writers but cartoonists, columnists, children's book authors. Wimp originated with a book series, as did goop, and nerd from a book by Dr. Seuss. Coinages are often contested, controversy swirling around such terms as gonzo, mojo, and booty call. Keyes considers all contenders, while also leading us through the fray between new word partisans, and those who resist them strenuously. He concludes with advice about how to make your own successful coinage. The Hidden History of Coined Words will appeal not just to word mavens but history buffs, trivia contesters, and anyone who loves the immersive power of language.
