Download Ebook Word Myths: Debunking Linguistic Urban Legends, by David Wilton
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Word Myths: Debunking Linguistic Urban Legends, by David Wilton
Download Ebook Word Myths: Debunking Linguistic Urban Legends, by David Wilton
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Review
"Think "hot dog" was coined by a New York baseball vendor, or that a certain vulgarity originated as an acronym? Then you need to read this book, which shows that some of the best etymological stories are just tall tales."--Chicago Tribune (10 Best Books About Language, 2004) "Think "hot dog" was coined by a New York baseball vendor, or that a certain vulgarity originated as an acronym? Then you need to read this book, which shows that some of the best etymological stories are just tall tales."--Chicago Tribune (10 Best Books About Language, 2004) "Think "hot dog" was coined by a New York baseball vendor, or that a certain vulgarity originated as an acronym? Then you need to read this book, which shows that some of the best etymological stories are just tall tales."--Chicago Tribune (10 Best Books About Language, 2004)
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About the Author
David Wilton is the creator and editor of wordorigins.org, since 1997 a leading Internet site for word and phrase origins. He has served as a journalist, Army officer, defense contractor, chemical and biological arms control negotiator, and software marketing executive. He lives in California.
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Product details
Paperback: 221 pages
Publisher: Oxford University Press; 1 edition (November 6, 2008)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0195375572
ISBN-13: 978-0195375572
Product Dimensions:
7.9 x 0.7 x 5.3 inches
Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review:
3.7 out of 5 stars
38 customer reviews
Amazon Best Sellers Rank:
#1,384,677 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
This book deserves a wide reading. Its central lesson, as that of the more popular series on urban legends, is this: Don't believe everything you hear (or see) regarding the origins of words and phrases. I learned from this book that there were (a) false origins; things I thought I knew but didn't; (b) words whose origin I correctly understood, but about which others are mistaken, and (c) words whose origins I didn't know (and was thus unaware that others held false opinions about). Both humbling and instructive is category (a). Included here for me is "Ring around the Rosie," which I have read in countless reputable texts started its career as a sort of macabre humor for children singing and dancing their way through Europe's 14th century plague. And, equally unsettling, was the realization that the Chevy "NOVA" was not a botched marketing campaign by GM in Mexico, and that a guy named Crapper did not in fact invent the toilets we daily flush. At least, I got "google" right. This is a well-written, easily digested romp through the history of words misunderstood by many. It underscores the continuing importance of scepticism, perhaps especially in this, the information age.
Have you heard that Eskimos have 500 words for "snow"? What does the international distress signal "SOS" mean? Do you know what an "aptronym" is? Have you noticed that some nautical enthusiasts attribute a maritime origin to nearly every word or phrase? This observation prompted one participant of an online discussion group to use the acronym "CANOE" to mean the "Conspiracy to Attribute Nautical Origins to Everything"! You'll discover that many etymologies you thought you "knew," you really didn't know at all. This little 200-page book was just great fun and most enlightening to read. I've referred to it often in my university communication classes -- a great resource for anyone interested in the origins and use of English words and phrases -- well researched and well written. Kudos to author David Wilton!
I sent copies to each of my many grandchildren - and then I actually read it and discovered that I could do as well on my own.
Got this as the Kindle sample, and became so hooked I went for the whole thing. After the second time I brought up something explored in this book in everyday conversation, I knew it was worth buying.The most interesting aspect, to me, was seeing how having old media (and especially newspapers) digitized into searchable format has significantly changed the currently accepted origins of words and phrases.Easy to pick up and put down as a background book, while maintaining overall themes through the chapters.
Oddly dull for such a fascinating subject. Not really well put together. Seems cheap and unreliable. Poor print job. Okay.
I admit to being a word geek. I love the picky nonsense of grammar (and the huge fights that result from it) but most of all, I love a good etymology. Mr. Wilton has done his homework here and it shows. His history is good and his reasoning quite persuasive. I don't know that I've stayed up til the wee smalls reading the origins of common words and phrases very often, but it was definitely worth it for this book. Great fun even for the non-geeky and the simply curious.
Starts off interesting, but eventually grows boring, as he shoots down word-myth after word-myth using essentially the same argument each time -- the word appears in the record before the story in the myth allegedly took place. Even more disappointing is the realization that over half of his supporting citations are to the Oxford English Dictionary, which seems rather lazy.
The book is engaging reading if you are interested in words and their origins. I am not familiar with all of the "urban legends" and enjoy learning new ones is fun. Thanks to the author for his detail and easy to read writing style.Word Myths: Debunking Linguistic Urban Legends
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