#Byword review full

And I learned some interesting word origins, such as pumpernickel, which comes from the German words pumpern (an onomatopoeaic synonym of blГ¤hen, вЂњto flatulateвЂќ) and nickel (вЂњimp, koboldвЂќ), so named because of the flatulence the bread can cause. I learned some new words, including foofaraw ( вЂњa great deal of fuss or attention given to a minor matter, originates in the American West where it has been variously spelled as fofaraw, forfarraw, and froufrawвЂњ).

#Byword review full

Word by Word is fascinating, very funny, and, as might be expected from a book written by a lexicographer, chock full of unexpected words and turns of phrase, like вЂњlabyrinthine complexity of a wordвЂ™s differentiaeвЂќ. She also gives a lexicographerвЂ™s-eye view of some recent lexicontroversies: the addition of a new sense to the word marriage to include gay marriage, and the definition of nude as вЂњhaving the color of a white personвЂ™s skin.вЂќ Stamper mixes in some interesting dictionary history, including the current challenges faced by dictionary publishers in a digital world. prescriptivism), using lexical corpora for clarifying word senses, inclusion of obscenities and vulgarities, etymology, and pronunciation. She devotes chapters to word usage and вЂњbadвЂќ grammar ( irregardless, its/ itвЂ™s, dialectal variants, descriptivism vs. Word by Word is packed with fun examples from StamperвЂ™s experience at Merriam-Webster working on dictionaries, laying bare the difficult decisions faced by lexicographers. Along the way she also introduces many of the people behind the scenes (the вЂњdrudgesвЂќ) who toil for years because they love what they do (вЂњit is the damnedest thing to spend your career in the company of this gorgeous, lascivious languageвЂќ). Stamper writes with a self-deprecating style about the craft of dictionary-making and the complicated process that goes into creating and updating each entry in a dictionary: reading and seeking out relevant citations, determining the senses and subsenses for each word, writing and editing the definitions and sample sentences, researching the etymology and pronunciation.

In Word by Word, Stamper provides an inside view of the world of lexicography, taking the reader on a tour through all the hard work that goes into producing вЂњThe Dictionary.вЂќ While this has the potential to be a very dry topic, the author gives us an account that is interesting and often hilarious. And as an unabashed lexiconnoisseur, I was quite excited to finally get a chance to read Word by Word:В The Secret Life of DictionariesВ by Kory Stamper. I have several bookshelves full of dictionaries of all types. I will happily and proudly admit that I love dictionaries. Word by Word:В The Secret Life of Dictionaries by Kory Stamper Lexplorers rating: 9.75/10 average customer rating: 4.8/5