A Word a Day

Author: Joseph Piercy
Publisher: Michael O'Mara Books
ISBN: 9781789293647
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 192

Book Description
A Word a Day contains 365 carefully selected words that will enhance and expand your vocabulary, along with their meanings, origins and sample usage and fascinating word-related facts and trivia. It is estimated that on average an English-speaking adult has acquired a functioning vocabulary of 25,000 words by the time they reach middle age. That sounds like a lot-- and more than enough for the daily purposes of communicating with each other in speech and writing. However, it is hard to feel quite so sanguine about our word power when considering those 25,000 words account for less than fifteen per cent of the total words in current usage in the English language. Furthermore, new words are created all the time and, as the word pool flourishes, can we afford to allow our vocabulary to stagnate? Logophile Joseph Piercy has the answer: a simple challenge to learn A Word a Day from this user-friendly onomasticon (that's a word list designed for a specific purpose--in case you were wondering ...). Each of the 365 words have been carefully selected for their elegance and pertinence in everyday situations and every entry contains a clear and concise outline of meaning, origin and sample usage in context, alongside fascinating word related facts and trivia. A Word a Day is a treasure trove of fascination and fun for all language lovers--delve in and enhance your vocabulary.

Another Word A Day

Author: Anu Garg
Publisher: Turner Publishing Company
ISBN: 0470324759
Category : Reference
Languages : en
Pages : 231

Book Description
A smorgasbord of surprising, obscure, and exotic words In this delightful encore to the national bestseller A Word A Day, Anu Garg, the founder of the wildly popular A Word A Day Web site (wordsmith.org), presents an all-new collection of unusual, intriguing words and real-life anecdotes that will thrill writers, scholars, and word buffs everywhere. Another Word A Day celebrates the English language in all its quirkiness, grandeur, and fun, and features new chapters ranging from "Words Formed Erroneously" and "Red-Herring Words" to "Kangaroo Words," "Discover the Theme," and "What Does That Company Name Mean?" In them, you'll find a treasure trove of curious and compelling words, including agelast, dragoman, mittimus, nyctalopia, quacksalver, scission, tattersall, and zugzwang. Each entry includes a concise definition, etymology, and usage example, interspersed with illuminating quotations. Praise for a word a day "Anu Garg's many readers await their A Word A Day rations hungrily. Now at last here's a feast for them and other verbivores. Eat up!" --Barbara Wallraff, Senior Editor at The Atlantic Monthly and author of Word Court "AWADies will be familiar with Anu Garg's refreshing approach to words: words are fun and they have fascinating histories." --John Simpson, Chief Editor, Oxford English Dictionary

A Word A Day

Author: Anu Garg
Publisher: Turner Publishing Company
ISBN: 1118039688
Category : Reference
Languages : en
Pages : 235

Book Description
"Anu Garg's many readers await their A Word A Day rations hungrily. Now at last here's a feast for them and other verbivores. Eat up!" -Barbara Wallraff Senior Editor at The Atlantic Monthly and author of Word Court Praise for A Word a Day "AWADies will be familiar with Anu Garg's refreshing approach to words: words are fun and they have fascinating histories. The people who use them have curious stories to tell too, and this collection incorporates some of the correspondence received by the editors at the AWAD site, from advice on how to outsmart your opponent in a duel (or even a truel) to a cluster of your favorite mondegreens." -John Simpson, Chief Editor, Oxford English Dictionary "A banquet of words! Feast and be nourished!" -Richard Lederer, author of The Miracle of Language Written by the founder of the wildly popular A Word A Day Web site (www.wordsmith.org), this collection of unusual, obscure, and exotic English words will delight writers, scholars, crossword puzzlers, and word buffs of every ilk. The words are grouped in intriguing categories that range from "Portmanteaux" to "Words That Make the Spell-Checker Ineffective." each entry includes a concise definition, etymology, and usage example-and many feature fascinating and hilarious commentaries by A Word A Day subscribers and the authors.

The Word-a-Day Vocabulary Workbook

Author: Francine Puckly
Publisher: Adams Media
ISBN: 150721569X
Category : Reference
Languages : en
Pages : 288

Book Description
Improve your vocabulary one day at a time with this fun and easy interactive workbook for learning new words! Every day is a chance to learn something new, expand your mind, and enhance your ability to communicate at work and in your relationships. In The Word-a-Day Vocabulary Workbook, you’ll discover new words with definitions, etymology, trivia, and writing prompts to help you remember the words and learn how to use them correctly. Whether you’re looking to exercise your brain, improve your vocabulary in everyday speech, or simply win your next crossword or Scrabble game, this book will improve your odds—and you’ll have fun doing it!

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day

Author: Merriam-Webster, Inc.
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780877791232
Category : Juvenile Nonfiction
Languages : en
Pages : 352

Book Description
Welcome to Merriam-Webster Kids! Fall 2021 marks the debut of our new imprint that serves our mission to help kids better understand and communicate with the world around them through highly engaging content designed to foster a love of language and learning from an early age. Our list is small, yet focused; over time you will see it build across all categories and ages that serve ages 0-12 and the families, teachers, and librarians that support them. From the largest team of dictionary editors and writers in America, and one of the largest in the world, thank-you for supporting us and Merriam-Webster Kids. Inspired by Merriam-Webster's popular Word of the Day digital feature, this book builds knowledge one day at a time with 366 masterful words, ages 8-12. Become a word virtuoso in just one year with 366 crackerjack words aimed to impress. This charmingly illustrated book features boffo words selected by the masterminds at Merriam-Webster to highlight the English language and its odd and unexpected history.

The Miracle of Language

Author: Richard Lederer
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1439139407
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 262

Book Description
Master verbalist Richard Lederer, America's "Wizard of Idiom" (Denver Post), presents a love letter to the most glorious of human achievements... Welcome to Richard Lederer's beguiling celebration of language -- of our ability to utter, write, and receive words. No purists need stop here. Mr. Lederer is no linguistic sheriff organizing posses to hunt down and string up language offenders. Instead, join him "In Praise of English," and discover why the tongue described in Shakespeare's day as "of small reatch" has become the most widely spoken language in history: English never rejects a word because of race, creed, or national origin. Did you know that jukebox comes from Gullah and canoe from Haitian Creole? Many of our greatest writers have invented words and bequeathed new expressions to our eveyday conversations. Can you imagine making up almost ten percent of our written vocabulary? Scholars now know that William Shakespeare did just that! He also points out the pitfalls and pratfalls of English. If a man mans a station, what does a woman do? In the "The Department of Redundancy Department," "Is English Prejudiced?" and other essays, Richard Lederer urges us not to abandon that which makes us human: the capacity to distinguish, discriminate, compare, and evaluate.

Oxford English Dictionary

Author: John A. Simpson
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 9780195218893
Category : Reference
Languages : en
Pages :

Book Description
The Oxford English Dictionary is the internationally recognized authority on the evolution of the English language from 1150 to the present day. The Dictionary defines over 500,000 words, making it an unsurpassed guide to the meaning, pronunciation, and history of the English language. This new upgrade version of The Oxford English Dictionary Second Edition on CD-ROM offers unparalleled access to the world's most important reference work for the English language. The text of this version has been augmented with the inclusion of the Oxford English Dictionary Additions Series (Volumes 1-3), published in 1993 and 1997, the Bibliography to the Second Edition, and other ancillary material. System requirements: PC with minimum 200 MHz Pentium-class processor; 32 MB RAM (64 MB recommended); 16-speed CD-ROM drive (32-speed recommended); Windows 95, 98, Me, NT, 200, or XP (Local administrator rights are required to install and open the OED for the first time on a PC running Windows NT 4 and to install and run the OED on Windows 2000 and XP); 1.1 GB hard disk space to run the OED from the CD-ROM and 1.7 GB to install the CD-ROM to the hard disk: SVGA monitor: 800 x 600 pixels: 16-bit (64k, high color) setting recommended. Please note: for the upgrade, installation requires the use of the OED CD-ROM v2.0.

A Word for Every Day of the Year

Author: Steven Poole
Publisher: Hachette UK
ISBN: 1787478599
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 405

Book Description
A weird and wonderful word and its meaning for every day of the year. Who knew that to dringle is to 'waste time in a lazy lingering manner'? Or that a sudden happy ending could be termed a eucotastrophe? Looking for an alternative word to 'bullshit'? Then try taradiddle. A Word for Every Day of the Year is a fascinating collection of 366 words and their definitions, perfect for anyone who loves the richness of the English language, its diversity and wants to expand their vocabulary. Each day offers a rare and remarkable word with its history and definition and occasionally a challenge to include it in our lives.

Storyteller's Word a Day

Author: Mrs. Wordsmith
Publisher: Mrs Wordsmith Incorporated
ISBN: 9781999610753
Category : Juvenile Nonfiction
Languages : en
Pages : 0

Book Description
Every day, flip the page and discover a new, hilariously illustrated word that will take your child's storytelling to the next level. Storyteller's Word a Day is packed with discerning data and insight on how to get the most out of every word. Set it on the breakfast table, talk about it together, tell stories, and create a daily word-learning habit that will take kids' storytelling to another planet. Hardcover with spiral binding for easy viewing by kids and parents.

Word World: Happy Word Day

Author: Jacqui Moody Luther
Publisher: Running Press
ISBN: 9780762419906
Category : Juvenile Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 0

Book Description
The gang realizes that they forgot Dog's birthday. Using their ingenuity, Bear, Frog, Sheep, and Pig come up with the letters to make party hats, cake, and a birthday card. But Bear's misspelling creates a monster that may ruin her gift to Dog. Find out how the gang gets the monster to go “back to letters” so the party can go on.