The Secret Lives of WordsHarcourt, 2000 - 296 páginas We are often unaware of the unique and intriguing stories of the words we love. Thousands of our words have been so twisted, tangled, misused, and muddled over the centuries that their original meaning has been obscured. You'll be surprised to learn that table napkins were once made of and referred to as asbestos, that atom means uncuttable, that a cloud was once a hill, and that a companion is one who eats bread with you. Compiled over the years in his handwritten notebooks, acclaimed prose stylist Paul West offers us an album of treasures. The Secret Lives of Words is an "Antiques Road Show" of language, in which West chronicles the centuries-long travels of words across continents and through cultures. For word enthusiasts, speakers, writers, thinkers, and all readers, this volume recounting the intimate ancestry of language will enrich our understanding of and appreciation for the words we use every day. |
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Página 38
... century , when all sexual bets were off , and almost unimaginable obscenities became commonplace , virtually anes ... century . The flitting , fluttering effect seems accurate , but the words for it begin in the sixteenth century ...
... century , when all sexual bets were off , and almost unimaginable obscenities became commonplace , virtually anes ... century . The flitting , fluttering effect seems accurate , but the words for it begin in the sixteenth century ...
Página 76
... century , coraunce had understandably come to be regarded as a plural , introducing a new singular , at first coren , then in the next century currant . By mistake , also in the late sixteenth century , the name got transferred to such ...
... century , coraunce had understandably come to be regarded as a plural , introducing a new singular , at first coren , then in the next century currant . By mistake , also in the late sixteenth century , the name got transferred to such ...
Página 276
... century ; by the next century it had acquired the supplementary meaning of aw- ful to look at . This is perhaps an access of sensitivity , implying degrees of recoil , from outright horror to aesthetic flinching . In the early 1930s ...
... century ; by the next century it had acquired the supplementary meaning of aw- ful to look at . This is perhaps an access of sensitivity , implying degrees of recoil , from outright horror to aesthetic flinching . In the early 1930s ...
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Términos y frases comunes
actually American appear asked ball became become begin bread British called century changes close comes common course cricket denote deriving dictionaries doubt early English especially etymology expression fact feel fiction fire force French German gerund give goes Greek hand hard head hear heard human idea Indo-European Italy keep kind known language late Latin least less letters LIVES OF WORDS look lost meaning meant Middle mind never noun Old English Old French once origin past PAUL WEST perhaps person phrase piece play poet reference Romans SECRET LIVES seems sense slang someone sometimes sound speech suggests sure term thing thought tion trying turn universe verb whereas woman wonder word's write
Referencias a este libro
Dubious Doublets: A Delightful Compendium of Unlikely Word Pairs of Common ... Stewart Edelstein Vista de fragmentos - 2003 |