Language reference

Much loved for its wit and wisdom since 1870, Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable takes you on a captivating adventure through its trademark blend of language, culture, myth and legend. As Susie Dent explains in the foreword, Brewer’s “is not a straightforward dictionary, nor is it an encyclopaedia. It is, in fact, unlike any other reference book that exists, anywhere.” This nineteenth edition encapsulates all the charm and wit that characterise its predecessors and maintains the standards of scholarship and eclecticism that have long been its hallmark.

Thoroughly updated with over 100 new and revised entries – think crowdsourcing, cyberpunk, iPad and mash-up – this unique resource is guaranteed to delight, entertain and inspire in the best Brewer’s tradition. Discover Brewer’s take on angels, heraldry, pub signs and recluses, and delve into the lexicographical world of the eggcorn. Whether you are a committed Brewerphile or a newcomer to its pages of fascinating entries, this edition will draw you in and keep you glued to its rich mix of eccentric nuggets.

The Encyclopedia of Rhetoric is a comprehensive survey of one of the Western world's oldest disciplines. Its 150 entries, written by leading scholars, bring together expertise in classical studies, philosophy, literature, literary theory, cultural studies, speech, and communications in a comprehensive treatment of the art of persuasion. The Encyclopedia is the most wide-ranging reference work of its kind, combining theory, history, and practice, with a special emphasis on public speaking, performance, and communication.

‘offers impeccable advice’ – The Times

Over 6,000 entries

This world-famous guide to the English language has been cherished and consulted by writers, editors, academics, and anyone who values good writing, for its practical and reasoned guidance on grammar, style, punctuation, spelling, and word choice since it first appeared in 1926. The new edition – the first in 18 years – has been thoroughly but sensitively revised to reflect English usage in the 21st century, and offers a clear, authoritative, and enlightening picture of the English we use today.

International in scope, the Dictionary provides in-depth coverage of both British and American English usage, with reference also to the English of Australia, Canada, India, New Zealand, and South Africa. The entries are packed with usage examples, some from established literary figures such as Chinua Achebe, Raymond Carver, Iris Murdoch, Harold Pinter, and Vikram Seth, and others from a vast range of newspapers, journals, books, broadcast material, websites, and other digital sources from across the globe, and include references to topical personalities such as Stephen Fry, Prince Harry, Jeremy Paxman, and Wayne Rooney.

Based on the evidence and research of the Oxford Dictionaries Programme, this is the most comprehensive and authoritative guide to usage available.

Over 4,500 entries

When Bryan Garner published the first edition of A Dictionary of Modern American Usage in 1999, the book quickly became one of the most influential style guides ever written for the English language. After four previous editions and over twenty years, our language has evolved in many ways, and the powerful tool of big data has revolutionized lexicography. This extensively revised new edition fully captures these changes, featuring a thousand new entries and over two hundred replacement entries, thoroughly updated usage data and ratios on word frequency based on the Google Ngram Viewer, a more balanced coverage of World Englishes, not just American and British, and the inclusion of gender-neutral language. However, one thing has not changed: in no sense is this a “regular” dictionary but a masterpiece of lexicography written with wit and personality by one of the preeminent authorities on the English language. To put it in David Foster Wallace’s words, Garner’s discussion of rhetoric and style still “borders on genius.”

From the (lost) battle between self-deprecating and self-depreciating to the misuse of it’s for its, from the variant spelling patty-cake taking over pat-a-cake in American English to the singular uses of they, Garner explains the nuances of grammar and vocabulary and the linguistic blunders to which modern writers and speakers are prone, whether in word choice, syntax, phrasing, punctuation, or pronunciation. His empirical approach liberates English from two extremes: from the “purists” who maintain that split infinitives and sentence-ending prepositions are malfeasances and from the linguistic relativists who believe that whatever people say or write must necessarily be accepted.

The purpose of Garner’s dictionary is to help writers, editors, and speakers use the language effectively. And it does so in a playful and persuasive way that will help you sound “grammatical but relaxed, refined but natural, correct but unpedantic.”

This dictionary provides scientists, science writers, and all who work in scientific publishing with a clear style guide for the presentation of scientific information. In over 9,700 entries, it reflects widely accepted usage and follows the recommendations of international scientific bodies such as IUPAC and IUPAP. The dictionary gives clear guidance on such matters as spellings (American English and British English), punctuation, abbreviations, prefixes and suffixes, units and quantities, and symbols.

Revised and fully updated, this new edition of the Oxford Dictionary for Scientific Writers and Editors includes feature entries on key areas, substantially increased coverage of the life sciences, and new entries in physics, astronomy, chemistry, computer science, and mathematics. New and revised appendices also provide useful supplementary tables including SI units, mathematical symbols, the electromagnetic spectrum, and useful online resources.

This comprehensive and authoritative A-Z guide is an invaluable tool for students, professionals, and publishers working with writing in the fields of physics, chemistry, botany, zoology, biochemistry, genetics, immunology, microbiology, astronomy, mathematics, and computer science.

Over 1,400 entries

This new edition of a landmark Companion notably focuses on World Englishes, English language teaching, English as an international language, and the effect of technological advances on the English language. More than 130 new entries include African American English, British Sign Language, China English, digital literacy, multimodality, social networking, superdiversity, and text messaging. It also includes new biographical entries on key individuals who have had an impact on the English language in recent decades, including Beryl (Sue) Atkins, Adam Kilgariff, and John Sinclair.

It is an invaluable reference for English language students and fascinating reading for any general reader with an interest in language.

Over 1,600 entries

A straightforward and accessible A-Z guide to the diverse and often complex terminology of English grammar. Includes clear and concise definitions which are enhanced by numerous example sentences, as well as relevant quotations from the scholarly literature of the field.

This second edition is written and edited by Professor Bas Aarts of University College London, writer of the acclaimed Oxford Modern English Grammar. It has been fully revised and updated, with particular attention paid to refreshing the example sentences included within the text. There are over 150 new entries that cover current terminology which has arisen since the publication of the first edition, and there are also new entries on the most important English grammars published since the start of the 20th century. Hundreds of new cross-references enhance the user-friendly nature of the text, and the list of works cited has been thoroughly updated to reflect the current state of the field.

All in all, this Dictionary is an invaluable guide to English grammar for all students and teachers of the subject, as well as all those with an informed interest in the English language.

Over 10,000 entries

What is it to ‘cock a snook’? Where is the land of Nod? Who was first to go the extra mile? Find the answers to these questions (and many more!) in the new edition of the Oxford Dictionary of Idioms.

This dictionary uncovers the meanings of myriad phrases and sayings that are used daily in the English language, encompassing more than 10,000 figurative expressions, similes, sayings, and proverbs. More than 400 idioms have been added to this new edition, and comprise recently coined and common sayings alike. New additions include ‘back of the net’, ‘drag and drop’, ‘go it alone’, ‘how come?’, ‘if you ask me’, ‘make your skin crawl’, and ‘wind your neck in’.

Illustrative quotations sourced from the Oxford Corpora give contextual examples of the idioms and their standard usage, and many entries include background information on the origins of the idiom in question. An updated thematic index makes for easy navigation, and anyone who is interested in the origins and diversity of English vernacular will have hours of fun browsing this fascinating dictionary.

Over 3,000 entries

Newly updated to incorporate recent additions to the English language, this popular dictionary provides a fascinating exploration of the origins and development of words in the English language. Drawing on Oxford's unrivalled dictionary research programme and language monitoring it brings to light the intriguing and often unusual stories of some of our most used words and phrases.

The A-Z entries include the first known use of the term along with examples, related lexes, and expressions which uncover the etymological composition of each word. Also featured are 22 expanded entries that give overviews of broad topic areas, 5 of which are completely new and that variously cover words from Oceania, word blends, eponyms, and acronyms. New findings in the OED since the previous edition have also been added including emoji, mansplain, meeple, meme, and spam.

An absorbing resource for language students and enthusiasts, but also an intriguing read for any person interested in the development of the English language, and of language development in general. It also includes an extended introduction on the history of the English language.

The field of morphology has gained increasing importance in contemporary linguistics with the realization that it can no longer be narrowly construed as the study of the means by which complex words are formed. Rather, the study of morphology must be situated in the context of our understanding of the mental lexicon as a whole. The Oxford Encyclopedia of Morphology offers a sweeping introduction to the field, showing that morphology is not only an active area of study in its own right, but also a critical link between different subfields of linguistics.

Led by Editor in Chief Rochelle Lieber and Associate Editors Sabine Arndt-Lappe, Antonio Fàbregas, Christina Gagné, and Francesca Masini, this collection includes 115 in-depth articles, encompassing all aspects of morphology, such as morphological units, inflection, derivation, compounding, and formal morphological means. Contributors at the forefront of the field discuss the major theoretical debates and methodological approaches, exploring the interface between morphology and phonology, syntax, and semantics, along with psycholinguistic, neurolinguistics, and sociolinguistic issues. The final section of the encyclopedia presents illustrative sketches of the morphological systems of different language families, from Arawak and Dravidian to Sino-Tibetan and Indo-European, offering a wide range of cross-linguistic data that will be useful to both researchers and teachers.

The Encyclopedia of Semiotics is a comprehensive reference guide to concepts in semiotics, sign theory, and cultural studies. Three hundred entries by leading scholars in a variety of fields—from anthropology and literary theory to linguistics and philosophy—survey the study of signs and symbols in human culture. These articles cover key concepts, theories, theorists, schools of thought, and issues in communications, cognition, and cultural theory. From introductions to Barthes and Bakhtin to analyses of gossip and myth, this is a valuable reference for students, scholars, or anyone interested in language, symbols, and the transmission of information. Clear, well-written entries make the scholarship accessible to both experts and nonspecialists, and the text is complimented by twenty color illustrations.