Much Ado About English: Up And Down The Bizarre Byways Of A Fascinating Language

Praise for Much Ado About English “Ostrobogulously loquacious, linguistically ostentatious: a peregrination through pages of percurrent pleasure. A fun book and very rewarding to read.” Dr Michael Johnson, Open University Much Ado About English Up and Down the Bizarre Byways of a Fascinating Language Richard Watson Todd First published in the US by Nicholas Brealey Publishing in 2007 First published in the UK in 2006 Reprinted 2007 3–5 Spafield Street 20 Park Plaza, Suite 1115A Clerkenwell, London Boston EC1R 4QB, UK MA 02116, USA Tel: +44 (0)20 7239 0360 Tel: (888) BREALEY Fax: +44 (0)20 7239 0370 Fax: (617) 523 3708 www.nicholasbrealey.com © Richard Watson Todd 2006 The right of Richard Watson Todd to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. ISBN-13: 978-1-85788-372-5 ISBN-10: 1-85788-372-1 British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Todd, Richard Watson, 1966– Much ado about English : up and down the bizarre byways of a fascinating language / Richard Watson Todd. p. cm. Includes index. ISBN-13: 978-1-85788-372-5 ISBN-10: 1-85788-372-1 1. English language--Etymology. 2. English language--Humor. 3. English language--Usage. 4. Lexicology. 5. English language--History. I. Title. PE1574.T63 2007 422--dc22 2006015793 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording and/or otherwise without the prior written permission of the publishers. This book may not be lent, resold, hired out or otherwise disposed of by way of trade in any form, binding or cover other than that in which it is published, without the prior consent of the publishers. Printed in Finland by WS Bookwell. Contents Introduction 1 Part I Origins How old is an earthling? 5 Dates of first use, origins of words The Welsh penguin 10 Borrowed words Wanted: A computer, female, age 18–25 14 Neologisms, words with changed meanings Who is that word? 17 Words and idioms derived from people’s names Cornflakes® or cornflakes? 19 Trademark words, company names The makings of fashionable language 22 Shakespearean origins The origin of phrases 24 Etymology of idioms Part II Pronunciation and Spelling Mispellings (sic) 31 Wrongly spelt words Why is ‘colonel’ pronounced ‘kernel’? 34 Pronunciation, homophones, homographs Sounds good to me 38 Onomatopoeia, most beautiful words, worst-sounding words A cheerful but challenging chapter 40 Alliteration, tongue twisters Much Ado About English Part III Usage The of to in 45 Common words, Basic English D