Language Arts & Disciplines : Vocabulary

For students whose first language is not English and who wish to study at a university with an English-based curriculum, no admittance test is more important than the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL). 400 Must-Have Words for the TOEFL helps you score well by arming you with the most important English vocabulary words commonly found on this crucial exam. This timely guide also encompasses the recent changes made to the test, including the emphasis on conversation and spontaneous communication to mirror the interactive nature of the classroom. 400 Must-Have Words for the TOEFL also includes:.:.; Activities such as paraphrasing, synonym and antonym exercises, and identifying prefixes and suffixes.; Strategies on how to incorporate new words into everyday vocabulary.; Chapters on identifying synonyms and paraphrasing sentences, roots, prefixes, and suffixes. more...

Price: $9.95

This work introduces renowned linguistics scholar Anatoly LibermanÕs comprehensive dictionary and bibliography of the etymology of English words. The English etymological dictionaries published in the past claim to solve the mysteries of word origins even when those origins have been widely disputed. An Analytic Dictionary of English Etymology, by contrast, discusses all of the existing derivations of English words and proposes the best one. In this inaugural volume, Liberman addresses fifty-five words traditionally dismissed as being of unknown etymology. Some of the entries are among the most commonly used words in English, including man, boy, girl, bird, brain, understand, key, ever, and yet. Others are slang: mooch, nudge, pimp, filch, gawk, and skedaddle. Many, such as beacon, oat, hemlock, ivy, and toad, have existed for centuries, whereas some have appeared more recentlyÑfor example, slang, kitty-corner, and Jeep. They are all united by their etymological obscurity. This unique resource discusses the main problems in the methodology of etymological research and contains indexes of subjects, names, and all of the root words. Each entry is a full-fledged article, shedding light for the first time on the source of some of the most widely disputed word origins in the English language. more...

Price: $50.00

A wide-ranging, exhortatory look at the pleasures of great conversation, including strategies for how to bring it about, from the witty pen of an Englishwoman wise in its ways. In The Art of Conversation, Catherine Blyth eloquently points out the sorry state of disrepair that conversation has fallen into—and then, taking examples from history, literature, philosophy, anthropology, and popular culture, she gives us the tools to rebuild. Her prose embodies the conversational values she promotes: It’s smart, succinct, self-deprecating, and light on its feet. The Art of Conversation isn’t about etiquette, elocution, or knowing how to hold your teacup with your little finger crooked just so. It’s about something simple and profound: connecting. In our distracted days, it’s easy to forget that each of us possesses a communication technology that has been in research and development for thousands of years. Conversation costs nothing, but can bring you the world. Blyth offers us a chance to revel in the possibilities of conversation. As Alexander Pope nearly wrote, “True ease in talking comes from art, not chance, as those move easiest who have learned to dance.” Okay, Pope was actually talking about writing, but Catherine Blyth has that skill as well. When you have read The Art of Conversation, you’ll not only know the steps, but hear the music like never before. more...

Price: $15.00

One of the English language’s most skilled and beloved writers guides us all toward precise, mistake-free usage. As usual Bill Bryson says it best: “English is a dazzlingly idiosyncratic tongue, full of quirks and irregularities that often seem willfully at odds with logic and common sense. more...

Price: $12.95

A great vocabulary program that is equally appropriate for younger students working at grade level and older students who have "forgotten" or never mastered the basics. The friendly look and tone of this series belies the comprehensive sweep of more...

Price: $19.95