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Johnson's Dictionary: A Modern Selection
Written virtually single-handedly over a seven-year period by a revered dean of English letters, Johnson’s Dictionary first appeared in 1755. A remarkable monument to the vigor and variety of our language and to the genius of its author, it served as the standard dictionary for more than 150 years and formed the basis for all subsequent English dictionaries. This modern version reduces the original 2,300 pages of definitions and literary examples to a more manageable length, retaining the verbal pleasure and historical curiosity of the original. It features many entries that can no longer be found in most modern dictionaries, with intriguing definitions and examples of usage in the literature of Johnson’s time.
480 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1963
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89 people want to read
About the author
Samuel Johnson
4,701 books410 followersPeople note British writer and lexicographer Samuel Johnson, known as "Doctor Johnson," for his
Dictionary of the English Language
(1755), for
Lives of the Poets
(1781), and for his series of essays, published under the titles
The Rambler
(1752) and
The Idler
(1758).
Samuel Johnson used the first consistent Universal Etymological English Dictionary , first published in 1721, of British lexicographer Nathan Bailey as a reference.
Beginning as a journalist on Grub street, this English author made lasting contributions to English literature as a poet, essayist, moralist, novelist, literary critic, biographer, and editor. People described Johnson as "arguably the most distinguished man of letters in English history." James Boswell subjected him to Life of Samuel Johnson , one of the most celebrated biographies in English. This biography alongside other biographies, documented behavior and mannerisms of Johnson in such detail that they informed the posthumous diagnosis of Tourette syndrome (TS), a condition unknown to 18th-century physicians. He presented a tall and robust figure, but his odd gestures and tics confused some persons on their first encounters.
Johnson attended Pembroke college, Oxford for a year before his lack of funds compelled him to leave. After working as a teacher, he moved to London, where he began to write essays for The Gentleman's Magazine. His early works include the biography The Life of Richard Savage and the poem " The Vanity of Human Wishes ." Christian morality permeated works of Johnson, a devout and compassionate man. He, a conservative Anglican, nevertheless respected persons of other denominations that demonstrated a commitment to teachings of Christ.
After nine years of work, people in 1755 published his preeminent Dictionary of the English Language, bringing him popularity and success until the completion of the Oxford English Dictionary in 1905, a century and a half later. In the following years, he published essays, an influential annotated edition of plays of William Shakespeare, and the well-read novel Rasselas . In 1763, he befriended James Boswell, with whom he later travelled to Scotland; A Journey to the Western Islands of Scotland , travel narrative of Johnson, described the journey. Towards the end of his life, he produced the massive and influential Lives of the Most Eminent English Poets , which includes biographies and evaluations of 17th- and 18th-century poets.
After a series of illnesses, Johnson died on the evening; people buried his body in Westminster abbey. In the years following death, people began to recognize a lasting effect of Samuel Johnson on literary criticism even as the only great critic of English literature.
Samuel Johnson used the first consistent Universal Etymological English Dictionary , first published in 1721, of British lexicographer Nathan Bailey as a reference.
Beginning as a journalist on Grub street, this English author made lasting contributions to English literature as a poet, essayist, moralist, novelist, literary critic, biographer, and editor. People described Johnson as "arguably the most distinguished man of letters in English history." James Boswell subjected him to Life of Samuel Johnson , one of the most celebrated biographies in English. This biography alongside other biographies, documented behavior and mannerisms of Johnson in such detail that they informed the posthumous diagnosis of Tourette syndrome (TS), a condition unknown to 18th-century physicians. He presented a tall and robust figure, but his odd gestures and tics confused some persons on their first encounters.
Johnson attended Pembroke college, Oxford for a year before his lack of funds compelled him to leave. After working as a teacher, he moved to London, where he began to write essays for The Gentleman's Magazine. His early works include the biography The Life of Richard Savage and the poem " The Vanity of Human Wishes ." Christian morality permeated works of Johnson, a devout and compassionate man. He, a conservative Anglican, nevertheless respected persons of other denominations that demonstrated a commitment to teachings of Christ.
After nine years of work, people in 1755 published his preeminent Dictionary of the English Language, bringing him popularity and success until the completion of the Oxford English Dictionary in 1905, a century and a half later. In the following years, he published essays, an influential annotated edition of plays of William Shakespeare, and the well-read novel Rasselas . In 1763, he befriended James Boswell, with whom he later travelled to Scotland; A Journey to the Western Islands of Scotland , travel narrative of Johnson, described the journey. Towards the end of his life, he produced the massive and influential Lives of the Most Eminent English Poets , which includes biographies and evaluations of 17th- and 18th-century poets.
After a series of illnesses, Johnson died on the evening; people buried his body in Westminster abbey. In the years following death, people began to recognize a lasting effect of Samuel Johnson on literary criticism even as the only great critic of English literature.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
July 23, 2018
im a sucker for a good etymology
May 3, 2024
Terrific. 7 years of single-handed labor he sent to his publisher in 1755 2,300 pages, containing some 43,000 words, some with more than 100 definitions, incorporating for the first-time pronunciation, Greek and/or Roman etymology, and an example of how others had used the word - many from Milton, Shakespeare, Pope, and Jonathan Swift. Although a dozen attempts were made by English lexicographers over the previous century to provide guides to words for academics, nothing came close to Johnson's seminal "Dictionary of the English Language" in depth and breadth.
This is a modern abridged version, of maybe 5,000 of the 'best' examples, of how he covered the words he chose. Takeaways: Shakespeare had no reference guides whatsoever, and none of the Greek & Roman classics had yet to be translated into English, so, too, Cervantes' Don Quixote was just published in Spain and only available in Spanish. So . . . Shakespeare guessed at spellings and meanings, and when needing a word or a phase to mean something that he hadn't yet come across, he made it up . . . lots of new words and phrases, making it necessary that we read him with a guide annotating liberally. Further, many (most?) words from Johnson's time have changed . . . both their spelling and definition.
This is a modern abridged version, of maybe 5,000 of the 'best' examples, of how he covered the words he chose. Takeaways: Shakespeare had no reference guides whatsoever, and none of the Greek & Roman classics had yet to be translated into English, so, too, Cervantes' Don Quixote was just published in Spain and only available in Spanish. So . . . Shakespeare guessed at spellings and meanings, and when needing a word or a phase to mean something that he hadn't yet come across, he made it up . . . lots of new words and phrases, making it necessary that we read him with a guide annotating liberally. Further, many (most?) words from Johnson's time have changed . . . both their spelling and definition.
January 23, 2009
I never imagined that I would have read a dictionary of any sort from cover to cover. What makes this selection of Johnson's remarkable achievement so readable is that the editors have chosen the entries which either highlight unusual words or those definitions which reflect Johnson's own character. A must for any language buff.
January 17, 2019
This was interesting so far as it was reference material for my degree.
March 21, 2011
This book is a treasure; for example, Johnson denfines "oats" as a grain fed to horses in England, but consumed by people in Scotland.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews