Books like Reading the OED by Ammon Shea

A witty, authoritative guide to the quirks of English, Bill Bryson’s Penguin Dictionary of Troublesome Words offers clear explanations, real‑world examples, and a concise pronunciation guide for more than a thousand challenging words.

'English Words' assumes no prior knowledge of linguistics in introducing the vocabulary of modern English usage. It covers meaning, history, pronunciation & the structure of words. This new edition has been extensively updated with new chapters, new exercises, an improved index & links to web resources.

The Professor and the Madman chronicles the friendship and fierce rivalry between Oxford English Dictionary editors Professor James Murray and American veteran Dr. W. C. Minor, whose extraordinary contributions and mental health struggles shaped one of the greatest linguistic projects.

"The author of Reading the OED presents an eye-opening look at language 'mistakes' and how they came to be accepted as correct--or not. English is a glorious mess of a language, cobbled together from a wide variety of sources and syntaxes, and changing over time with popular usage. Many of the words and usages we embrace as standard and correct today were at first considered slang, impolite, or just plain wrong. Whether you consider yourself a stickler, a nitpicker, or a rule-breaker in the know, Bad English is sure to enlighten, enrage, and perhaps even inspire. Filled with historic and contemporary examples, the book chronicles the long and entertaining history of language mistakes, and features some of our most common words and phrases, including: Decimate; Hopefully; Enormity; That/which; Enervate/energize; Bemuse/amuse; Literally/figuratively; Ain't; Irregardless; Socialist; OMG; Stupider. Lively, surprising, funny, and delightfully readable, this is a book that will settle arguments among word lovers--and it's sure to start a few, too"--

ARE YOU AT A LOSS FOR WORDS? Ask yourself these questions: ■ DO YOU ALWAYS USE THE PROPER WORD? ■ DO YOU KNOW HOW TO PRONOUNCE IT? ■ DO YOU KNOW HOW TO AVOID ILLITERATE EXPRESSIONS? ■ DO YOU SPEAK EASILY AND WITHOUT EMBARRASSMENT? Word power means success. Tests have proven again and again that people who do not possess large vocabularies are the ones who fail in today's competitive world. Modern life demands verbal knowledge. The person who can say what he means comes out on top in business, in school and in his personal affairs. WORD POWER MADE EASY will help you to achieve a fluent, powerful and effective vocabulary in three weeks. Utilizing the latest methods of research, it is simple, easy and entertaining to use. Now you can own this new edition of this authoritative book for an exceptionally low price.

Atrue story of W. C. Minor, a former Civil War surgeon who spent his later years in Broadmoor asylum and, despite the odds, became a key contributor to the Oxford English Dictionary.