A delightfully unexpected, lovingly curated ode to the unique collective nouns that adorn our language, from “a leap of leopards ” to “a murder of crows ” and beyond, from the inimitable voice behind Inside the Actors Studio “I am madly in love with collective nouns! They make language so colorful and ticklish. . . . [ An Exaltation of Larks ] possess[es] an embarrassment of riches (wink wink!).” —Lupita Nyong’o, The New York Times For those who have wondered if the familiar “pride of lions” and “gaggle of geese” were merely the tip of a linguistic iceberg, James Lipton has provided a definitive answer: here are hundreds of equally pithy, often poetic terms he has unearthed and collected into one exhaustive volume. Over years of painstaking research, he embarked on an odyssey that has given us a “slouch of models,” a “shrivel of critics,” an “unction of undertakers,” a “blur of Impressionists,” a “score of bachelors,” a “pocket of quarterbacks,” and many more. Witty, beautiful, and remarkably apt, An Exaltation of Larks is a brilliant compendium of more than 1,100 resurrected or newly minted contributions to that ever-evolving species, the English language.

Kidnapping, attempted assassination, espionage âe¦ not the answers youâe(tm)d expect to the question âe~what happens when you become a linguist?âe(tm) But now, reflecting on a long and hugely successful career at the forefront of the field of English Language and Linguistics, David Crystal answers this question and offers us a special look behind the scenes at the adventures, rewards, challenges and pitfalls of his life in language. Both an autobiography and a highly accessible introduction to the field of linguistics, Just a Phrase Iâe(tm)m Going Through illuminates and entertains us with its many insights into the ever-fascinating subject of language. David Crystal is synonymous with language, both as a great populariser and linguistic pioneer, and his contribution to the field is unparalleled. This is a book not just for students and teachers but for all lovers of language. For more about David Crystal at Routledge, visit: www.routledge.com/textbooks/9780415485746.

Countless apt locutions from French have entered the English language, some becoming everyday phrases, others tossed around recklessly by film critics and gourmets. Until now there hasn't been a single handy source a non-French speaker could turn to for explanation - or riposte. In Je Ne Sais What? Jon Winokur, author of The Portable Curmudgeon, explores the French expressions, maxims, and literary allusions that grace English. With his customary finesse, Winokur offers definitions and often brief etymological notes and illustrative quotations for such Gallicisms as cherchez la femme, savoir vivre, nom de guerre, demi-monde, sang froid, and c'est la vie. Unlike Franglais, the hybrid of French and English which has the French Academy in a furor over phrases like les chicken nuggets, Frenglish, as Winokur defines it, is grammatically correct French that enriches English discourse. A nonpareil companion to Eugene Ehrlich's Amo, Amas Amat and More, which helped make Latin a living language once more, Je Ne Sais What? is both a practical reference and a word lover's bon ami. The perfect browsing antidote to ennui, the perfect gift for Francophiles, armchair linguists, and crossword addicts, this delightful guide to the language of love, fashion, food, and diplomacy explains the French everyone uses but few fully understand.