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Etymology

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The Professor and the Madman by Simon Winchester

The Elements of Style by William Strunk Jr.

181 books — 37 voters

Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary by Merriam-Webster

The Oxford English Dictionary by John Andrew Simpson

Hope in the Valley by Penelope Bourdillon

Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary by A.S. Hornby

Dictionaries

395 books — 76 voters

Course in General Linguistics by Ferdinand de Saussure

An Introduction to Language by Victoria A. Fromkin

Best Books about Linguistics

256 books — 224 voters

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It’s Literally Summer! 93 Topical Titles for Your Seasonal Reading List.

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“ He wonders aloud at the origins of valentining. 'You're right,' Rachel says. 'It is a verb. Can be. And birds valentine each other, make mating calls. And usually mate in mid-February. You see?' 'But why Valentine?' asks Zach. 'Why valentining?' 'There were many Saint Valentines,' offers Tasha. 'I don't know what the link is between their martyrdom and love letters.' Zach is not very interested in the old tradition or the archaic verb. He is not bothered by the mating calls of passerines or ...more ”
― Emma Richler, Be My Wolff

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“ Although, fanciful's origin circa 1627 made me still love the word, even if I'd ruined its applicability to my connection with Snarl. (I mean DASH!) Like, I could totally see Mrs. Mary Poppencock returning home to her cobblestone hut with the thatched roof in Thamesburyshire, Jolly Olde England, and saying to her husband, "Good sir Bruce, would it not be wonderful to have a roof that doesn't leak when it rains on our green shires, and stuff?" And Sir Bruce Poppencock would have been like, "I say ...more ”
― Rachel Cohn & David Levithan, Dash & Lily's Book of Dares

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