This comprehensive and accessible student workbook accompanies the seventh edition of Albert C. Baugh and Thomas Cable’s A History of the English Language. Each chapter in the workbook corresponds directly to a chapter in the textbook and offers exercises, review questions, extensive supplementary examples, additional explanations, and a range of sample extracts taken from texts of different periods. An additional “pre‑chapter” on the sounds of English also provides phonetic infor...

A History of the English Language explores the linguistic and cultural development of English from the Roman conquest of England to the present day to provide a comprehensive overview of the different aspects of its history. This best-selling classic textbook encourages the reader to develop both an understanding of present-day English and an enlightened attitude toward the issues affecting the language today.Fully revised and updated, the new edition includes the latest d...

This comprehensive and accessible student workbook accompanies the fifth edition of Albert C. Baugh and Thomas Cable's History of the English Language.Each chapter in the workbook corresponds directly to a chapter in the textbook and offers exercises, review questions, extensive supplementary examples, additional explanations and a range of sample extracts taken from texts of different periods. An additional 'pre-chapter' on the sounds of English also provides phonetic info...

Why is there an 'h' in ghost? William Caxton, inventor of the printing press and his Flemish employees are to blame: without a dictionary or style guide to hand in fifteenth century Bruges, the typesetters simply spelled it the way it sounded to their foreign ears, and it stuck. Seventy-five per cent of English spelling is regular but twenty-five per cent is complicated, and in Spell It Out our foremost linguistics expert David Crystal extends a helping hand to the confused and cu...

The Oxford Companion to the English Language provides an authoritative single-volume source of information about the English language. It is intended both for reference and for browsing. The first edition of this landmark Companion, published in 1998, adopted a strong international perspective, covering topics from Cockney to Creole, Aboriginal English to Caribbean English and a historical range from Chaucer to Chomsky, Latin to the World Wide Web. It succinctly described and disc...

Why is there such a striking difference between English spelling and English pronunciation? How did our seemingly relatively simple grammar rules develop? What are the origins of regional dialect, literary language, and everyday speech, and what do they have to do with you?Seth Lerer's Inventing English is a masterful, engaging history of the English language from the age of Beowulf to the rap of Eminem. Many have written about the evolution of our grammar, pronun...

This scarce book contains an incredibly detailed treatise on the grammar of the English language. Manual of English Grammar and Composition is readily accessible, making it the perfect book for both teachers and students of English, as well as a great addition to any collection of antiquarian linguistic literature. Containing a level of detail and insight often unparalleled in modern grammar texts, Manual of English Grammar and Composition is a must-have for discerning students who seek to...

This second edition of The History of the English Language- A Sourcebook provides a comprehensive and accessible guide to the origins and development of the English language. First published in 1992, the book contains over fifty illustrative passages, drawn from the oldest English to the twentieth century. The passages are contextualised by individual introductions and grouped into the traditional periods of Old English, Early Middle English, Later Middle English, Early Modern English and ...

Writing is not like chemical engineering. The figures of speech should not be learned the same way as the periodic table of elements. This is because figures of speech are not about hypothetical structures in things, but about real potentialities within language and within ourselves. The "figurings" of speech reveal the apparently limitless plastic

History of English: * covers the development of the English language from the 5th century to the present day* contains a `mini-corpus' of texts, used for exercises and to illustrate points raised in the commentary* introduces key linguistic concepts* provides `discussion points' to generate debate* involves readers in collecting and analysing their own data

Now in its fourth edition, Poetry: The Basics remains an engaging exploration of the exciting and diverse world of poetry. Jeffrey Wainwright’s accessible introduction demystifies poetic forms and traditions, which can at first seem bewildering.Drawing on examples ranging from Chaucer to children's rhymes, Cole Porter to Dylan Thomas, and from around the English-speaking world, it shows how any reader can understand and gain pleasure from poetry. This comprehensive guide e...