Words on the Move: Why English Won't - and Can't - Sit Still (Like, Literally)
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | 4.99 (959 Votes) |
| Asin | : | B01KILD1JC |
| Format Type | : | |
| Number of Pages | : | 480 Pages |
| Publish Date | : | 2017-05-23 |
| Language | : | English |
DESCRIPTION:
Did you know that silly once meant "blessed"? Or that ought was the original past tense of owe? Or that the suffix -ly in adverbs is actually a remnant of the word like? And have you ever wondered why some people from New Orleans sound as if they come from Brooklyn? McWhorter encourages us to marvel at the dynamism and resilience of the English language, and his book offers a lively journey through which we discover that words are ever on the move, and our lives are all the richer for it.. Language is always changing - but we tend not to like it. But the truth is different and a lot less scary, as John McWhorter shows in this delightful and eye-opening exploration of how English has always been in motion and continues to evolve today. Words on the Move opens our eyes to the surprising backstories to the words and expressions we use every day. Whether it's the use of literally to mean "figuratively" rather tha
Kevin Currie-Knight said Why and How Words Move!. A new book about language by John McWhorter is always a treat. He has a knack for explaining things about language in ways that are clear, crisp, witty and interesting. Words on the Move takes aim at the idea that there is a 'correct' form of English, where words like "like" aren't used as fillers, where "LOL" doesn't happen, and where there are "correct' meanings (or pronunciations) of words at any given time. McWhorter is no "anything goes" relativist, but this book is devoted to arguing that language is ALWAYS in. McWhorter? More like McWordier I love reading about language and the history of English, and there are parts of this book that I found fascinating. The trouble is, you have to navigate through John McWhorter's personal style to get to those parts. There doesn't seem to be any logical order to the content, and there are many moments when it seems less like McWhorter is trying to share his knowledge and more like he's trying to show off his knowledge. I would appreciate a more straightforward style, and I often found myself wishing he would've just. "This book is like, totally awesome" according to TChris. John McWhorter is spot on when he says that people don’t like the fact that language changes. I’m one of them. We learn the meaning or pronunciation of a word, or rules of grammar, and we don’t want to concede that what we know to be “wrong” has suddenly become right, or at least acceptable. I grind my teeth when I hear someone using impact as a verb, but I have come to accept that people are going to do so whether I like it or not.As irksome as the truth might be (“Novelty is uns