etymology

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Topical Term
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x
Alias: 
etymology

Common phrases and where they come from

2001
Explains the origins of more than fifty common phrases.

Cool cats, top dogs, and other beastly expressions

1999
Tells the stories behind over one thousand animal words and expressions used in everyday language; grouped in nine animal categories including cats, dogs, domestic fowl, farm animals, wild mammals, birds, reptiles and amphibians, insects, and marine animals.

What's in a name?

reflections of an irrepressible name collector
1996
Takes a whimsical look at the naming of everyday things, from people, to cars, animals, and places, and discusses their origins.

Where in the word?

extraordinary stories behind 801 ordinary words
1990
A collection of stories about the origins of everyday words.

The Facts on File encyclopedia of word and phrase origins

2000
Traces the history of over nine thousand English words and phrases, including slang, proverbs, plant and animal names, place-names, phrases from literature, nicknames, historical expressions, and foreign-language expressions.

America in so many words

words that have shaped America
1997
Discusses the origins of words that have been added to the English language by Americans, featuring one representative word for each year from 1751 through 1998, and includes examples from earlier years beginning with the first English-speaking settlements in 1555.

NTC's dictionary of word origins

1991
Comprehensive reference to the origins of nearly 1,200 words used in the English language.

Seeing red or tickled pink

color terms in everyday language
1992

From Achilles' heel to Zeus's shield

1993
Explores the origins, meaning, and modern usage of more than 300 words and phrases taken from mythology.

Loose cannons, red herrings, and other lost metaphors

2001
Gives the meaning of over a thousand words and phrases used in everyday speech where the original meaning has been lost.

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