Word Origins...And How We Know Them : Etymology for Everyone by Liberman, Anatoly (Professor of the Humanities, Professor of the Humanities, University of Minnesota, USA)

Author: Liberman, Anatoly (Professor of the Humanities, Professor of the Humanities, University of Minnesota, USA)

Language: history & general works

Published on 30 April 2009 by Oxford University Press Inc in the United States.

Paperback | 336 pages, 1 Halftone
206 x 141 x 23 | 442g

Word Origins is the only guide to the science and process of etymology for the layperson. This funny, charming, and conversational book not only tells the known origins of hundreds of words, but also shows how their origins were determined. Liberman, an internationally acclaimed etymologist, takes the reader by the hand and explains the many ways that English words can be made, and the many ways in which etymologists try to unearth the origins of words.

Part history, part how-to, and completely entertaining, Word Origins invites readers behind the scenes to watch an etymologist at work.