Synopsis
This absorbing book introduces the reader to some of the main facets of words as they make their presence felt in everyday use. The author discusses what words are, how we use them, how they originate and change their meaning, how new words are created, as well as their use in speech and literature and many other aspects of these building blocks of language. His purpose is to stimulate, to get the reader to look more closely at the ways of words and to provoke a re-examination of what is often taken for granted. A fascinating insight into an endlessly intriguing subject.
BookList
Formerly English professor of linguistics and now dean of arts at Hong Kong Baptist College, Robert Lord reflects on the usage and the evolution of language. Among his interesting insights are those on the ways that people accommodate, and even adopt, the language idiosyncrasies of others, particularly in families. He also considers the origins of words and how words assume different meanings in verbal versus written contexts. A wake-up call about the structure and use of language without preachiness or pomposity.