An entertaining and illuminating collection of weird, wonderful, and downright baffling words from the origins of English—and what they reveal about the lives of the earliest English speakers Old English is the language you think you know until you actually hear or see it. Unlike Shakespearean English or even Chaucer’s Middle English, Old English—the language of Beowulf—defies comprehension by untrained modern readers. Used throughout much of Britain more than a thousand years ago, it is rich with words that haven’t changed (like word), others that are unrecognizable (such as neorxnawang, or paradise), and some that are mystifying even in translation (gafol-fisc, or tax-fish). In this delightful book, Hana Videen gathers a glorious trove of these gems and uses them to illuminate the lives of the earliest English speakers. We discover a world where choking on a bit of bread might prove your guilt, where fiend-ship was as likely as friendship, and where you might grow up to be a laughter-smith. The Wordhord takes readers on a journey through Old English words and customs related to practical daily activities (eating, drinking, learning, working); relationships and entertainment; health and the body, mind, and soul; the natural world (animals, plants, and weather); locations and travel (the source of some of the most evocative words in Old English); mortality, religion, and fate; and the imagination and storytelling. Each chapter ends with its own “wordhord”—a list of its Old English terms, with definitions and pronunciations. Entertaining and enlightening, The Wordhord reveals the magical roots of the language you’re reading right now: you’ll never look at—or speak—English in the same way again.

Set along both the physical and social margins of the British Empire in the second half of the seventeenth century, Everyday Life in the Early English Caribbean explores the construction of difference through the everyday life of colonial subjects. Jenny Shaw examines how marginalized colonial subjects--Irish and Africans--contributed to these processes. By emphasizing their everyday experiences Shaw makes clear that each group persisted in its own cultural practices; Irish and Africans also worked within--and challenged--the limits of the colonial regime. Shaw's research demonstrates the extent to which hierarchies were in flux in the early modern Caribbean, allowing even an outcast servant to rise to the position of island planter, and underscores the fallacy that racial categories of black and white were the sole arbiters of difference in the early English Caribbean. The everyday lives of Irish and Africans are obscured by sources constructed by elites. Through her research, Jenny Shaw overcomes the constraints such sources impose by pushing methodological boundaries to fill in the gaps, silences, and absences that dominate the historical record. By examining legal statutes, census material, plantation records, travel narratives, depositions, interrogations, and official colonial correspondence, as much for what they omit as for what they include, Everyday Life in the Early English Caribbean uncovers perspectives that would otherwise remain obscured. This book encourages readers to rethink the boundaries of historical research and writing and to think more expansively about questions of race and difference in English slave societies.

Sample This: Common English Sentences -- A About -- It doesn’t matter who says what about me. About -- That’s what being American is all about. About -- They were going about their daily lives. About -- This is what life is about. About -- This training has been all about that. About -- We have nothing to feel defensive about. About -- What city was all about today? Abuse -- He was found guilty of abusing his office. Accept -- He accepted an opportunity with enthusiasm. Accept -- He accepted his invitation for his birthday. Accept -- He accepted it without protest. Account -- Asia accounts for the maximum oral cancer cases. Account -- Lighting accounts for 20 percent of the total electricity demand. Account -- Our state accounts for 9 of 10 eggs exported. Account -- She gave the police a full account of the incident. Account -- The team gave a good account of themselves in the match. Accuse -- Protestors accused the state govt. of inaction. Achieve -- He achieved some measure of success. Achieve -- He has achieved, what was impossible to think. Achieve -- He is the only person to have achieved such a significant shift. Across -- A wave of attacks across the country killed 95. Across -- Moonlight glittered across the coconut leaves. Across -- My house is just across the street. Across -- Police officers across ranks expressed shock. Across -- Red alert sounded across the state. Across -- She watched the incident from across the road. Across -- The blast has cut across class and gender. Across -- The government launched military drills across half the country. Across -- The issue is slowly becoming a matter of debate across villages in the country. Across -- We could also attack across the border. Act -- He acted in a street play. Act -- Heat acts on metals. Act -- I act from a sense of duty. Act -- My lawyer acts for me. Act -- You should act up to my advice. Activity -- It is quite unfortunate that such an inhuman activity is taking place here. Add -- He added his signature to the petition. Address -- President addressed a press conference. Address -- They received 25 objections and addressed all of them. Administer -- Administer anti-polio drops. Admit -- She was admitted with a severe breathing problem. Adopt -- He adopted the look of Obama. Advance -- The mob advanced us shouting angrily. Advice -- I have a piece of advice for you. After -- Take medicine twice after the fever is down. Agree -- He agreed to act opposite me in the movie. Agree -- We agreed to another demand of him. Ahead -- Our team was ahead by two goals. Ahead -- Preparations for the festival begin ahead. Aim -- My remarks were not aimed at you. Aim -- The new bill aims at filling the gaps in the existing laws. Alarm -- It is nothing to be alarmed about. Allocate -- The government has allocated the funds. Along -- CM and Deputy CM were sworn in along with a 24-member cabinet by Governor. Along -- Enter the lane alongside the Newspaper office. Along -- He had come to the city along with his wife for sightseeing a week ago. Along -- He was missing along with his servant. Along -- The sanctuary area runs along with three states. Among -- From among those he prescribes medicines too are ministers. Amount -- Cartoon amounted to an “insult” to the icon. Amount -- It amounts to judicial indiscipline. Amount -- His action amounts to a violation of human and civil rights. Anger -- His argument angered the driver and a clash ensued. Answer -- Nobody answered the repeated knocks. Answer -- An email to him wasn’t immediately answered. Any -- It was the funniest thing any of us have seen for ages. Any -- The situation is not any better in nearby villages. Apart -- An explosion tore apart a coach of a passenger train. Appear -- A blip appeared on the Radar. Appear -- Efforts appeared to be getting nowhere. Appear -- He appeared calm. Appear -- He appeared unsteady on his feet. Appear -- News-item appeared in the national dailies. Appear -- She appeared the most pretty thing in the world. Appear -- A ship appeared a huge black shadow to me. Appear -- The match appeared to have been fixed. Appear -- They appeared to be making efforts to trace the missing kids. Appear -- They wanted her to appear in advertisements. Apply -- I applied this to myself. Apply -- She applied vermilion on her head. Approach -- They approached a checkpoint. Arise -- A dispute arose between two groups over the sum of money won in gambling. Arise -- His behavior aroused the suspicion of the security guards. Arise -- The only difficulties arose from language barriers. Arise -- The question does not arise. Arise -- They aroused other people’s suspicions. Arm -- Cops were armed with tear gas shells. Ask -- Goddess asked me for a boon. Ask -- He asked “uncomfortable” questions. Ask -- He asked her about her well-being. Assess -- A team of experts will assess the situation. Assess -- CM assessed the status of relief work. Associate -- He was in fear of her life and the life and safety of anyone associated with her. Associate -- People associate harmful or bad with the word bacteria. Associate -- Pink is associated with grace. Assume -- He was believed to have assumed different identities over the years. Assume -- His remarks assume significance. Assume -- The meeting assumed great importance for student’s future. Assume -- The move assumed importance in the light of the incident. Attach -- We attach great importance to our health. Attain -- Their families had decided to wed them once they attained marriageable age. Attempt -- He attempted to answer all his questions. Attempt -- He was attempting to overtake another vehicle. Attract -- He attracted my attention. Attribute -- He attributed the bad state of parks to a lack of funds. Authorize -- I authorized him for payments. Avenge -- He wanted to avenge the humiliation he suffered. Average -- He is above average height for his age. Avert -- We made specific plans to avert the threat. Avoid -- He avoided a direct answer. Avoid -- She was upset because she thought he was avoiding her. Avoid -- They avoided looking at each other. Awake -- The city awoke to a clear but cold morning. Awake -- I awoke later on to the sound of my cell phone ringing. Away -- We were away so long.

With more than 7,000 up-to-date phrases, this dictionary covers situations from talking to a doctor to ordering a meal, and helps learners communicate personal feelings, and make small talk.

The Language of Daily Life in England (1400–1800) is an important state-of-the art account of historical sociolinguistic and socio-pragmatic research. The volume contains nine studies and an introductory essay which discuss linguistic and social variation and change over four centuries. Each study tackles a linguistic or social phenomenon, and approaches it with a combination of quantitative and qualitative methods, always embedded in the socio-historical context. The volume presents new information on linguistic variation and change, while evaluating and developing the relevant theoretical and methodological tools. The writers form one of the leading research teams in the field, and, as compilers of the Corpus of Early English Correspondence, have an informed understanding of the data in all its depth. This volume will be of interest to scholars in historical linguistics, sociolinguistics and socio-pragmatics, but also e.g. social history. The approachable style of writing makes it also inviting for advanced students.

This book offers an experiential perspective on the lives of Elizabethans—how they worked, ate, and played—with hands-on examples that include authentic music, recipes, and games of the period. Daily Life in Elizabethan England: Second Edition offers a fresh look at Elizabethan life from the perspective of the people who actually lived it. With an abundance of updates based on the most current research, this second edition provides an engaging—and sometimes surprising—picture of what it was like to live during this distant time. Readers will learn, for example, that Elizabethans were diligent recyclers, composting kitchen waste and collecting old rags for papermaking. They will discover that Elizabethans averaged less than 2 inches shorter than their modern British counterparts, and, in a surprising echo of our own age, that many Elizabethan city dwellers relied on carryout meals—albeit because they lacked kitchen facilities. What further sets the book apart is its "hands-on" approach to the past with the inclusion of actual music, games, recipes, and clothing patterns based on primary sources.

Daily Life in Anglo-Saxon England examines and recreates many of the details of ordinary lives in early medieval England between the 5th and 11th centuries, exploring what we know as well as the surprising gaps in our knowledge. Daily Life in Anglo-Saxon England covers daily life in England from the 5th through the 11th centuries. These six centuries saw significant social, cultural, religious, and ethnic upheavals, including the introduction of Christianity, the creation of towns, the Viking invasions, the invention of "Englishness," and the Norman Conquest. In the last 10 years, there have been significant new archaeological discoveries, major advances in scientific archaeology, and new ways of thinking about the past, meaning it is now possible to say much more about everyday life during this time period than ever before. Drawing on a combination of archaeological and textual evidence, including the latest scientific findings from DNA and stable isotope analysis, this book looks at the life course of the early medieval English from the cradle to the grave, as well as how daily lives changed over these centuries. Topics covered include maintenance activities, education, play, commerce, trade, manufacturing, fashion, travel, migration, warfare, health, and medicine.

This a speaking and vocabulary book for intermediate speakers of English. There are 20 topic-based chapters packed with vocabulary and speaking practice. It is perfect as an additional resource or a stand-alone lesson.