The first Edition of the Morris Dictionary of Word and Phrase Origins detailed the fascinating and little known stories behind thousands of words and phrases that we use every day. In this new edition, William and Mary Morris update and expand their classic work to keep pace with our ever changing language.

New entries include:

New trends--crack, glitch, greenmail, Harrier attack airplanes
Foreign terms--falafel, geisha, jihad, paparazzi
People--batman, dead end kid, Dutch uncle, hatchet man, Young Turks
Given names--Chester, Edith, Jennifer and others
Food--Adam and Eve on a raft, alligator pear, grapefruit, Harriet Lane
Sports--box score, cheese champions, full court press
and many more

Throughout the Morris's present the histories of intriguing expressions in an eminently entertaining and readable fashion.

About the Author

William Morris (1834-1896) was an accomplished writer, textile designer and artist. A utopian socialist, he was associated with the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood and the English Arts and Craft Movement, and was a founding member of the Socialist League in Britain. Greatly influenced by the medieval period, Morris helped establish the modern fantasy genre though his works The Defence of Guenevere and Other Poems, A Dream of John Ball, and The Well at the World’s End. Authors like J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis were greatly influenced by works like The House of the Wolfings, The Roots of the Mountains, and The Wood Beyond the World. Morris was also an accomplished publisher, founding the Kelmscott Press in 1891, whose 1896 edition of the Works of Geoffrey Chaucer is considered a masterpiece of book design.

"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.

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