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Word Perfect
- Etymological Entertainment For Every Day of the Year
- Narrated by: Susie Dent
- Length: 10 hrs and 59 mins
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Publisher's summary
Lexicographer and all-round word expert, queen of Countdown's Dictionary Corner for over 20 years, regular columnist for the Independent, Radio Times and The Week, Susie Dent is a national treasure. Her warm witty tweets reintroducing us to the words that we all need more in our lives from scurryfunge (frantically tidying up by shoving things into a cupboard just before visitors arrive) to apricity, (the warmth of the sun on a winter's day) are among the internet's most shared - now she's turning them into a linguistic almanac.
From 1st January to 31st December the listener will discover a curious coinage or a fascinating etymological fact linked to that particular day - from the dramatic true story behind stealing someone's thunder to the original Jack the Lad. Word Perfect gathers all her very best discoveries from the true origin of freelancer which comes from knights who were free to use their lance for whoever paid most, rather than being tied to a single lord. (Also secretaries kept your secrets so were secretries).
Sticks and stones should probably be still avoided but words, especially in the hands of Susie Dent, will never hurt you. We don't have to choose the negative, Word Perfect offers a vivid reminder that you can be gruntled, ruthful, couth, ruly, kempt, pecunious, toward, whelmed and full of gorm. And we all need a bit more of that in our lives.
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-
Story
Whether it's the distress of a bad haircut (AGE-OTORI) or longing for the food someone else is eating (GROAKING), the pleasure found in other people's happiness (CONFELICITY) or the shock of jumping into icy water (CURGLAFF), there are real words to pinpoint exactly how you feel and Susie Dent, Queen of Countdown's Dictionary Corner and lexicographer extraordinaire, is going to help you find them. Here are 1001 terms everyone needs, whether it's the best kind of hug (CWTCH), the relief found in swearing (LALOCHEZIA), or the ability to endure till the end (PERTOLERANCE).
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Love Susie Dent and her books.
- By Anonymous User on 03-30-23
By: Susie Dent
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Dent's Modern Tribes
- The Secret Languages of Britain
- By: Susie Dent
- Narrated by: Susie Dent
- Length: 7 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Learn how to decode the private languages that are swapped around us every day - amongst cabbies and paramedics, soap stars and comedians, cricketers and barristers - in Susie Dent's unique and witty guide to Britain's modern tribes. Did you know that a soldier's biggest social blunder is called 'jack brew' - making yourself a cuppa without making one for anyone else? That twitchers have an expression for a bird that can't be identified - LBJ (the letters stand for little brown job)?
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Loved It!
- By Anonymous User on 06-02-20
By: Susie Dent
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The Etymologicon
- A Circular Stroll Through the Hidden Connections of the English Language
- By: Mark Forsyth
- Narrated by: Don Hagen
- Length: 7 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
The Etymologicon is a completely unauthorized guide to the strange underpinnings of the English language. It explains: How you get from “gruntled” to “disgruntled”; why you are absolutely right to believe that your meager salary barely covers “money for salt”; how the biggest chain of coffee shops in the world (hint: Seattle) connects to whaling in Nantucket; and what precisely the Rolling Stones have to do with gardening.
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Maddening! Does not work as an audiobook!
- By James on 01-05-16
By: Mark Forsyth
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The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows
- By: John Koenig
- Narrated by: John Koenig
- Length: 4 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
A truly original book in every sense of the word, The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows poetically defines emotions that we all feel but don’t have the words to express - until now. By turns poignant, relatable, and mind-bending, the definitions include whimsical etymologies drawn from languages around the world, interspersed with otherworldly collages and lyrical essays that explore forgotten corners of the human condition - from astrophe, the longing to explore beyond the planet Earth, to zenosyne, the sense that time keeps getting faster.
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Saver in Small Listens
- By Georzetta on 12-18-21
By: John Koenig
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The Origins of English Words
- A Discursive Dictionary of Indo-European Roots
- By: Joseph Twadell Shipley
- Narrated by: Jonathan Todd Ross
- Length: 36 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
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Performance
-
Story
There are no direct records of the original Indo-European speech. By comparing the vocabularies of its various descendants, however, it is possible to reconstruct the basic Indo-European roots with considerable confidence. In The Origins of English Words, Shipley catalogues these proposed roots and follows the often devious, always fascinating, process by which some of their offshoots have grown.
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Soooooo boring
- By Koko B. on 07-08-24
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Our Magnificent Bastard Tongue
- The Untold History of English
- By: John McWhorter
- Narrated by: John McWhorter
- Length: 5 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A survey of the quirks and quandaries of the English language, focusing on our strange and wonderful grammar. Why do we say "I am reading a catalog" instead of "I read a catalog"? Why do we say "do" at all? Is the way we speak a reflection of our cultural values? Delving into these provocative topics and more, Our Magnificent Bastard Tongue distills hundreds of years of fascinating lore into one lively history.
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Great for casual linguists
- By Bertie on 01-11-10
By: John McWhorter
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An Emotional Dictionary
- Real Words for How You Feel, from Angst to Zwodder
- By: Susie Dent
- Narrated by: Susie Dent
- Length: 10 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
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Performance
-
Story
Whether it's the distress of a bad haircut (AGE-OTORI) or longing for the food someone else is eating (GROAKING), the pleasure found in other people's happiness (CONFELICITY) or the shock of jumping into icy water (CURGLAFF), there are real words to pinpoint exactly how you feel and Susie Dent, Queen of Countdown's Dictionary Corner and lexicographer extraordinaire, is going to help you find them. Here are 1001 terms everyone needs, whether it's the best kind of hug (CWTCH), the relief found in swearing (LALOCHEZIA), or the ability to endure till the end (PERTOLERANCE).
-
-
Love Susie Dent and her books.
- By Anonymous User on 03-30-23
By: Susie Dent
-
Dent's Modern Tribes
- The Secret Languages of Britain
- By: Susie Dent
- Narrated by: Susie Dent
- Length: 7 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Learn how to decode the private languages that are swapped around us every day - amongst cabbies and paramedics, soap stars and comedians, cricketers and barristers - in Susie Dent's unique and witty guide to Britain's modern tribes. Did you know that a soldier's biggest social blunder is called 'jack brew' - making yourself a cuppa without making one for anyone else? That twitchers have an expression for a bird that can't be identified - LBJ (the letters stand for little brown job)?
-
-
Loved It!
- By Anonymous User on 06-02-20
By: Susie Dent
-
The Etymologicon
- A Circular Stroll Through the Hidden Connections of the English Language
- By: Mark Forsyth
- Narrated by: Don Hagen
- Length: 7 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Etymologicon is a completely unauthorized guide to the strange underpinnings of the English language. It explains: How you get from “gruntled” to “disgruntled”; why you are absolutely right to believe that your meager salary barely covers “money for salt”; how the biggest chain of coffee shops in the world (hint: Seattle) connects to whaling in Nantucket; and what precisely the Rolling Stones have to do with gardening.
-
-
Maddening! Does not work as an audiobook!
- By James on 01-05-16
By: Mark Forsyth
-
The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows
- By: John Koenig
- Narrated by: John Koenig
- Length: 4 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A truly original book in every sense of the word, The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows poetically defines emotions that we all feel but don’t have the words to express - until now. By turns poignant, relatable, and mind-bending, the definitions include whimsical etymologies drawn from languages around the world, interspersed with otherworldly collages and lyrical essays that explore forgotten corners of the human condition - from astrophe, the longing to explore beyond the planet Earth, to zenosyne, the sense that time keeps getting faster.
-
-
Saver in Small Listens
- By Georzetta on 12-18-21
By: John Koenig
-
The Origins of English Words
- A Discursive Dictionary of Indo-European Roots
- By: Joseph Twadell Shipley
- Narrated by: Jonathan Todd Ross
- Length: 36 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
There are no direct records of the original Indo-European speech. By comparing the vocabularies of its various descendants, however, it is possible to reconstruct the basic Indo-European roots with considerable confidence. In The Origins of English Words, Shipley catalogues these proposed roots and follows the often devious, always fascinating, process by which some of their offshoots have grown.
-
-
Soooooo boring
- By Koko B. on 07-08-24
-
Our Magnificent Bastard Tongue
- The Untold History of English
- By: John McWhorter
- Narrated by: John McWhorter
- Length: 5 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A survey of the quirks and quandaries of the English language, focusing on our strange and wonderful grammar. Why do we say "I am reading a catalog" instead of "I read a catalog"? Why do we say "do" at all? Is the way we speak a reflection of our cultural values? Delving into these provocative topics and more, Our Magnificent Bastard Tongue distills hundreds of years of fascinating lore into one lively history.
-
-
Great for casual linguists
- By Bertie on 01-11-10
By: John McWhorter
What listeners say about Word Perfect
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall
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Performance
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- DB
- 03-12-22
I’ve played this book approximately 500 times…
That doesn’t mean I’ve heard it all… let me explain.
I put on Susie Dent as I turn out the light and snuggle in to sleep. 10 min later, I am.
This is not to say I’m being ‘bored’ to sleep, far from it.
Susie’s narration in like the tinkle of water in a babbling stream. It lulls me off into the arms of Morpheus. And I love it.
No matter where I start the book, I am still hearing derivations and anecdotes for the first time.
And yes, I do use some of my boarding vocabulary on my unsuspecting friends.
In short, I cannot recommend this book highly enough.
N.B. To hear Susie explain the ancestry of the F word had me in stitches! This is a great listen, thank you Susie, for letting me sleep with you.
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- Debbie
- 01-12-24
Buy The Book
This book is so amazing you’re better off buying rather than listening to it - or do both. The information comes at you quickly and I found myself wanting to revisit numerous words. Get the book and grab a highlighter.
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