Don't Believe a Word: The Surprising Truth About Language

Author: David Shariatmadari
Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
ISBN: 1324004266
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 336

Book Description
A linguist’s entertaining and highly informed guide to what languages are and how they function. Think you know language? Think again. There are languages that change when your mother-in-law is present. The language you speak could make you more prone to accidents. Swear words are produced in a special part of your brain. Over the past few decades, we have reached new frontiers of linguistic knowledge. Linguists can now explain how and why language changes, describe its structures, and map its activity in the brain. But despite these advances, much of what people believe about language is based on folklore, instinct, or hearsay. We imagine a word’s origin is it’s “true” meaning, that foreign languages are full of “untranslatable” words, or that grammatical mistakes undermine English. In Don’t Believe A Word, linguist David Shariatmadari takes us on a mind-boggling journey through the science of language, urging us to abandon our prejudices in a bid to uncover the (far more interesting) truth about what we do with words. Exploding nine widely held myths about language while introducing us to some of the fundamental insights of modern linguistics, Shariatmadari is an energetic guide to the beauty and quirkiness of humanity’s greatest achievement.

Don't Believe A Word

Author: David Shariatmadari
Publisher: Hachette UK
ISBN: 1474608469
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 336

Book Description
*** 'Wonderful. You finish the book more alive than ever to the enduring mystery and miracle of that thing that makes us most human' STEPHEN FRY 'Most popular books on language dumb down; Shariatmadari's smartens things up, and is all the more entertaining for it' THE SUNDAY TIMES, a Book of the Year 'A meaty, rewarding and necessary read' GUARDIAN 'Fascinating and thought-provoking . . . crammed with weird and wonderful facts . . . for anyone who delights in linguistics it's a richly rewarding read' MAIL ON SUNDAY *** - A word's origin doesn't tell you what it means today - There are languages that change when your mother-in-law is present - The language you speak could make you more prone to accidents - There's a special part of the brain that produces swear words Taking us on a mind-boggling journey through the science of language, linguist David Shariatmadari uncovers the truth about what we do with words, exploding nine widely-held myths about language while introducing us to some of the fundamental insights of modern linguistics.

Don't Believe It

Author: Charlie Donlea
Publisher: Pinnacle Books
ISBN: 0786042230
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 448

Book Description
From the acclaimed author of Twenty Years Later comes a twisting, impossible-to-put-down novel of suspense in which a filmmaker helps clear a woman convicted of murder—only to find she may be a puppet in a sinister game. Fans of Freida McFadden and Alice Feeney will be left breathless by this unforgettable thriller that builds to a shocking conclusion... The Girl of Sugar Beach is the most watched documentary in television history—a riveting, true-life mystery that unfolds over twelve weeks and centers on a fascinating question: Did Grace Sebold murder her boyfriend, Julian, while on a Spring Break vacation, or is she a victim of circumstance and poor police work? Grace has spent the last ten years in a St. Lucian prison, and reaches out to filmmaker Sidney Ryan in a last, desperate attempt to prove her innocence. As Sidney begins researching, she uncovers startling evidence overlooked during the original investigation. Before the series even finishes filming, public outcry leads officials to reopen the case. Delving into Grace’s past, Sidney peels away layer after layer of deception. But as she edges closer to the real heart of the story, Sidney must decide if finding the truth is worth risking her newfound fame, her career . . . even her life. “You can’t blame Charlie Donlea if the ending of his novel makes your jaw drop. The title alone is fair warning that his characters are no more to be trusted than our initial impressions of them.” —The New York Times Book Review

Don't Believe a Word

Author: Patricia MacDonald
Publisher: Severn House Publishers Ltd
ISBN: 1780107501
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 238

Book Description
“MacDonald has written another terrific novel of psychological suspense, marked by well-developed, sympathetic characters and excellent, tightly paced ¬plotting. Tami Hoag and Francine Mathews fans will devour” Library Journal Starred Review A daughter sets out to discover the truth about her mother’s death in this absorbing novel of psychological suspense. Eden Radley had a strained relationship with her mother ever since Tara deserted the family nine years before to run off with her much younger lover. But when she’s told that her mother has killed herself and her severely disabled young son, Eden’s half-brother, Eden is ridden with guilt. For her mother had tried to get in touch with her on the night she died, and Eden had ignored her text. Was Tara calling for help? Heading to Cleveland, Ohio, for the funeral, Eden discovers there was so much she didn’t know about her mother, nor about her enigmatic, troubled stepfather Flynn Darby. And the more she learns, the more convinced she becomes that Tara’s death was no suicide. Could Flynn really be guilty of murder ...?

One Word for Kids

Author: Jon Gordon
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 1119430313
Category : Juvenile Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 54

Book Description
From the authors who created the One Word movement, impacting schools, businesses, and sports teams around the world, comes a charming fable that can be read and shared by everyone. If you could choose only one word to help you have your best year ever, what would it be? Love? Fun? Believe? Brave? It’s probably different for everyone. How you find your word is just as important as the word itself. And once you know your word, what do you do with it? In One Word for Kids, bestselling author Jon Gordon—along with coauthors Dan Britton and Jimmy Page—asks these questions to children and adults of all ages, teaching an important life lesson in the process. This engaging, fully illustrated fable follows Stevie, a young boy falling asleep on the first day of school. His teacher gives the class an assignment: to find the one word that will help them have their best year ever. To discover their one word, they must look inside themselves, look up, and look out. At home, Stevie is upset because he can’t find his word. After his dad offers some helpful advice, Stevie excitedly begins the quest for his word. His search helps him discover a lot about himself, what he loves, and what is important to him. An easy read with a powerful message, One Word for Kids appeals to readers of all ages and is an ideal entry point into discussing a valuable lesson in a fun and engaging way.

A Guide to the Present Moment

Author: Noah Elkrief
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780985953409
Category : Belief and doubt
Languages : en
Pages : 299

Book Description
Do you want to stop feeling stress, anxiety, shame, unworthiness, depression, anger, guilt, sadness, worry, or fear? It certainly seems as though these emotions are inevitable, and directly created by our circumstances, our situations, and the people in our lives. However, it is possible to discover that all your unwanted emotions are actually created by thoughts in your mind - and each of these emotions can vanish in an instant if you just stop believing these thoughts to be true. This Book Will Help You To: - Experience peace in situations that used to be filled with anxiety and stress - Live with a sense of a wholeness, worthiness, or completeness - Enjoy more love and stronger connections in your relationships with others - Experience the freedom to act how you feel without worrying about others' opinions - Live in the moment or live the power of now (i.e. spiritual awakening) - Experience the fulfillment you have been searching for.

Don't Believe Everything You Think

Author: Thubten Chodron
Publisher: Shambhala Publications
ISBN: 1559393963
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 257

Book Description
It can be hard for those of us living in the twenty-first century to see how fourteenth-century Buddhist teachings still apply. When you’re trying to figure out which cell phone plan to buy or brooding about something someone wrote about you on Facebook, lines like “While the enemy of your own anger is unsubdued, though you conquer external foes, they will only increase” can seem a little obscure. Thubten Chodron’s illuminating explication of Togmay Zangpo’s revered text, The Thirty-seven Practices of Bodhisattvas, doesn’t just explain its profound meaning; in dozens of passages she lets her students and colleagues share first-person stories of the ways that its teachings have changed their lives. Some bear witness to dramatic transformations—making friends with an enemy prisoner-of-war, finding peace after the murder of a loved one—while others tell of smaller lessons, like waiting for something to happen or coping with a minor injury.

The God I Don't Believe in

Author: Juan Arias
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780853423829
Category : Christianity
Languages : en
Pages : 200

Book Description
Fr. Arias was the founder of a movement to promote dialogue with those outside the Church. In this book, he enters into a communion of thought with people who do not share his faith. He seeks to show that the "magically remote" God rejected by the unbeliever, bears no relation to the One whom Christians worship.

I Am Using My Words!

Author: Jordan Collins
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781785985140
Category : Board books
Languages : en
Pages : 26

Book Description
Kitty-Kat is a good kitten, but she doesn't use her words. She points, growls, stamps and scowls, but she doesn't say what she wants!

The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows

Author: John Koenig
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1501153668
Category : Reference
Languages : en
Pages : 288

Book Description
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER “It’s undeniably thrilling to find words for our strangest feelings…Koenig casts light into lonely corners of human experience…An enchanting book. “ —The Washington Post A truly original book in every sense of the word, The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows poetically defines emotions that we all feel but don’t have the words to express—until now. Have you ever wondered about the lives of each person you pass on the street, realizing that everyone is the main character in their own story, each living a life as vivid and complex as your own? That feeling has a name: “sonder.” Or maybe you’ve watched a thunderstorm roll in and felt a primal hunger for disaster, hoping it would shake up your life. That’s called “lachesism.” Or you were looking through old photos and felt a pang of nostalgia for a time you’ve never actually experienced. That’s “anemoia.” If you’ve never heard of these terms before, that’s because they didn’t exist until John Koenig set out to fill the gaps in our language of emotion. The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows “creates beautiful new words that we need but do not yet have,” says John Green, bestselling author of The Fault in Our Stars. By turns poignant, relatable, and mind-bending, the definitions include whimsical etymologies drawn from languages around the world, interspersed with otherworldly collages and lyrical essays that explore forgotten corners of the human condition—from “astrophe,” the longing to explore beyond the planet Earth, to “zenosyne,” the sense that time keeps getting faster. The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows is for anyone who enjoys a shift in perspective, pondering the ineffable feelings that make up our lives. With a gorgeous package and beautiful illustrations throughout, this is the perfect gift for creatives, word nerds, and human beings everywhere.