☰

Health, Fitness & Dieting

Psychology & Counseling

Word Play: What Happens When People Talk

Sold Out / Out of Stock

Word Play: What Happens When People Talk

Why do certain words make us blush or wince? Why do men and women really speak different languages? Why do nursery rhymes in vastly different societies possess similar rhyme and rhythm patterns? What do slang, riddles and puns secretly have in common?

This erudite yet irresistibly readable book examines the game of language: its players, strategies, and hidden rules. Drawing on the most fascinating linguistic studies--and touching on everything from the Marx Brothers to linguistic sexism, from the phenomenon of glossolalia to Apache names for automobile parts--Word Play shows what really happens when people talk, no matter what language they happen to be using.

"A captivating, almost entirely unpedantic book...solidly founded in scholarship, love of language, and an unabashed worldliness about play itself."--Washington Post

"Absorbing...so curious, amusing, and enlightening...we almost inadvertently learn a great deal about linguistics. [But] it seems scarcely to matter what we've learned...we've simply had too much fun."--The New York Times
Country USA
Brand Vintage
Manufacturer Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group
Binding Paperback
ItemPartNumber illustrations
Color White
ReleaseDate 1993-03-31
UnitCount 1
EANs 9780679734086

You might also like...

Speak: A Short History of Languages

Speak: A Short History of Languages

Language Awareness: Readings for College Writers

Language Awareness: Readings for College Writers

The Mother Tongue - English And How It Got That Way

The Mother Tongue - English And How It Got That Way

The Atlas of Languages: The Origin and Development of Languages Throughout the World

The Atlas of Languages: The Origin and Development of Languages Throughout the World

Eats, Shoots & Leaves: The Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation

Eats, Shoots & Leaves: The Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation