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The Etymologicon: A Circular Stroll Through the Hidden Connections of the
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The Etymologicon: A Circular Stroll Through the Hidden Connections of the English Language Paperback - 2012

by Mark Forsyth

Springing from the popular and hilarious Inky Fool blog, Forsyth examines the strange and surprising connections between words and takes readers on a gleeful guided tour through the secret labyrinth that lurks beneath the English language.

Summary

Do you know why…

…a mortgage is literally a death pledge? …why guns have girls’ names? …why salt is related to soldier?

You’re about to find out…

The Etymologicon (e-t?-‘mä-lä-ji-kän) is:
*Witty (wi-te\): Full of clever humor
*Erudite (er-?-dit): Showing knowledge
*Ribald (ri-b?ld): Crude, offensive


The Etymologicon is a completely unauthorized guide to the strange underpinnings of the English language. It explains: how you get from “gruntled” to “disgruntled”; why you are absolutely right to believe that your meager salary barely covers “money for salt”; how the biggest chain of coffee shops in the world (hint: Seattle) connects to whaling in Nantucket; and what precisely the Rolling Stones have to do with gardening.


From the publisher

Mark Forsyth is a writer, journalist, proofreader, ghostwriter, and pedant. He was given a copy of the Oxford English Dictionary as a christening present and has never looked back. He is the creator of The Inky Fool, a blog about words, phrases, grammar, rhetoric, and prose.

Details

  • Title The Etymologicon: A Circular Stroll Through the Hidden Connections of the English Language
  • Author Mark Forsyth
  • Binding Paperback
  • Edition Reprint
  • Pages 304
  • Volumes 1
  • Language ENG
  • Publisher Berkley Books
  • Date 2012-10-02
  • Features Price on Product - Canadian, Table of Contents
  • ISBN 9780425260791 / 0425260798
  • Weight 0.5 lbs (0.23 kg)
  • Dimensions 7.7 x 5 x 0.9 in (19.56 x 12.70 x 2.29 cm)
  • Ages 18 to UP years
  • Grade levels 13 - UP
  • Themes
    • Aspects (Academic): UK Unique
  • Library of Congress subjects English language - Etymology, English language - Terms and phrases
  • Library of Congress Catalog Number 2012533123
  • Dewey Decimal Code 422

Media reviews

“The stocking filler of the season...how else to describe a book that explains the connection between Dom Perignon and Mein Kampf.”--The Observer

“Crikey...this is addictive!”--The Times

“Mark Forsyth is clearly a man who knows his onions.”--Daily Telegraph

Citations

  • Kirkus Reviews, 09/01/2012, Page 0

About the author

Mark Forsyth is a writer, journalist, proofreader, ghostwriter, and pedant. He was given a copy of the Oxford English Dictionary as a christening present and has never looked back. He is the creator of The Inky Fool, a blog about words, phrases, grammar, rhetoric, and prose.

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The Etymologicon : A Circular Stroll Through the Hidden Connections of the English Language

The Etymologicon : A Circular Stroll Through the Hidden Connections of the English Language

by Mark Forsyth

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