The Dictionary of Wordplay by Morice Morice Dave (2001-01-01) Paperback

by Dave Morice

The Dictionary of Wordplay is the first dictionary of wordplay, ever. Poet and author Dave Morice, is uniquely qualified to show us the whole spectrum of the expansive field of wordplay. In its more than 1,234 entries, this book ranges from literary forms such as the acrostic and the Exquisite Corpse to well-known wordplay genres such as palindromes, spoonerisms, and anagrams to the numerical science of word squares and lettershifts. an invaluable reference for writers, teachers students, linguists and anyone who loves language, The Dictionary of Wordplay is also an endlessly enjoyable read.

Genres: Words, Reference

Paperback

First published January 1, 2001

Reviews

[T Campbell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not as useful as I hoped

This book contains a lot of terms you won't find elsewhere (outside of Word Ways), which is good if you're looking for new ideas, bad if you want to do follow-up research. I would have preferred a book that included more words with unusual properties, not just unusual properties for words to have. Yet it's still a crucial resource for the wordplay pro.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am a complete word nerd, so this is one of my favorite books. Not one that a person would read at one sitting, but great fun to dip in to occasionally. For instance, if you need an answer to the questions:

"What are the only three countries whose English names contain three consecutive letter of the alphabet?"
"What do the words 'lathe', 'toad', and 'heel' have in common?"
"What is special about the word-pair 'irk-vex'?"

then this is the place to find answers.

(or you can check my update to this review in a day or so)

Answers:

1. Afghanistan, Tuvalu, Kirghistan.
2. All are so-called 'ouija words' - they can be broken down into subparts which have the same meaning in different languages (oui-ja, la-the, to-ad, he-el)
3. Each is obtained by applying a 13-letter shift to the letters of the other

[Clackamas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Super fun book for word geeks! I'll write a better review once I'm at a computer... GoodReads on the phone bites.