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The English Language Laid Bare
Jeremy Butterfield
ISBN: 9780199239061
Format: Hardback
Publisher:Oxford University Press
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In this book, Jeremy Butterfield mines the Oxford Corpus, a vast collection of electronically-held texts used for compiling Oxford's world-famous dictionaries. He uncovers a wealth of fascinating facts and figures across the whole spectrum of English - from vocabulary size and word origins to spelling and meaning, from word groupings and idiomatic phrases to grammar and usage. Whether you are happy to give the language free rein (free reign…
Using evidence provided by the world's largest language databank, the Oxford English Corpus, Butterfield uncovers fascinating facts about the English language. Where does our vocabulary come from? How do word meanings change? How is our language really being used? This entertaining book has the up-to-date and authoritative answers to all the key questions about our language. With over 2 billion words contained in the Oxford English Corpus, Butterfield takes a thorough look at the English language and exposes its peculiarities and penchants, its development and difficulties, revealing exactly how it operates. Interpolating his expert knowledge of dictionary-making, Butterfield explains how dictionaries decide which words to include, how they find definitions, and how a Corpus influences the process. Covering all areas of English, from spelling and speech to idioms and idiosyncrasies, including a thoughtful chapter about the future of English, and with entertaining examples and useful charts throughout, this compelling and lively book contains something for everyone.
| ISBN | 0199239061 | | Pages | 192 | | ISBN13 | 9780199239061
(What's this?) | | Volumes | 1 | | Publisher | Oxford University Press | | Weight (grammes) | 307 | | Imprint | Oxford University Press | | Published in | Oxford | | Format | Hardback | | Height (mm) | 196 | | Publication date | 30 Oct 2008 | | Width (mm) | 129 | | Library of Congress | PE1628 | | Spine width (mm) | 19 | | DEWEY | 420 | | Academic level | General | | DEWEY edition | DC22 | |
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| | | A sea change: The Corpus | | 1 | | 1 | | Size matters: How many words? | | 10 | | 2 | | Your Roman-Saxon-Danish-Norman English: Where do words come from? | | 21 | | 3 | | Beware of heard: Why spelling wobbles | | 48 | | 4 | | Which is to be master? Meaning in context | | 64 | | 5 | | Words of a feather: Word groupings | | 85 | | 6 | | Cats and dogs: Idiomatic phrases | | 102 | | 7 | | Grammar that can govern even kings: What do we mean by grammar? | | 120 | | 8 | | Style wars: Usages people hate | | 136 | | | | Epilogue: Dictionaries then and now | | 157 | | | | Notes | | 166 | | | | Index | | 175 |
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