Betty Kirkpatrick - Websters Word Power Essential English Phrases: Everyday Phrases Explained

WEBSTER'S WORD POWER Betty Kirkpatrick, a graduate of Edinburgh University, has a long career in reference publishing. She has edited Chambers Twentieth Century Dictionary, Rogets Thesaurus, the concise edition of Brewers Phrase and Fable, and was language consultant to the Encarta World English Dictionary. She has compiled various other reference books, including the Oxford Paperback Thesaurus and the Bloomsbury Dictionary of Cliches. She acts as a consultant to the Bloomsbury Good Word Guide. Betty is author of an extensive list of publications on various aspects of the English language for learners of English. Published 2014 by Geddes & Grosset, an imprint of The Gresham Publishing Company Ltd.,Academy Park, Building 4000, Gower Street, Glasgow, G51 1PR, Scotland, UK Copyright 2014 The Gresham Publishing Company Ltd. Text by Betty Kirkpatrick All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the copyright holder. Conditions of Sale
This book is sold with the condition that it will not, by way of trade or otherwise, be resold, hired out, lent, or otherwise distributed or circulated in any form or style of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without the same conditions being imposed on the subsequent purchaser.

ISBNs
Print: 978-1-84205-761-2
epub: 978-1-84205-783-4
mobi: 978-1-84205-813-8 This book is not published by the original publishers of Websters Dictionary or by their successors. Developed with the financial assistance of the Creative Scotland Innovation Fund. Essential English PhrasesEssential English Phrases provides the user with a wide range of phrases that are often missing from the average English dictionary. With the wealth of new words that regularly appear in the language there is a constant space problem in dictionaries so the idiomatic sector of the language tends to be omitted. This is unfortunate since idioms are a great source of enrichment for a language. Frequently they are the icing on the cake that prevents a piece of prose from being uninteresting and pedestrian.

Thanks to the influence of the media, we live in a world of instant, widespread communication, so it is not surprising that great emphasis is now placed on communication skills. There are, of course, many different areas of communication. Some involve a rapid exchange of information with a concentration on simple, concise English. Others, however, involve a more creative use of language and that is where idioms come into their own. Essential English Phrases will be useful to the reader and to the writer. By browsing through this book many writers will find material with which to enrich their writing.

The only problem is that they may be diverted from their writing to browse further, for this is a very browsable book. People with a general interest in language and no great desire to write will find it so as well. With the reader in mind, the dictionary gives the meaning of a host of idiomatic expressions in easily understood plain English. As an added dimension for the writer it includes example sentences (in italic type) showing the idioms in use. These examples capture the flavour of the expressions and indicate the contexts in which they are usually found. The example sentences will be particularly useful to learners of English as a foreign language as they provide a model for them to follow and prevent them from making mistakes.

Understanding and reproducing idiomatic expressions is one of the most difficult aspects of mastering a foreign language, and this dictionary will help many learners avoid the pitfalls. Many idiomatic expressions in English have interesting origins. Sometimes these are lost in the mists of time and sometimes they are open to dispute but those that have been established have been included (within angle brackets). Locating words in a conventional English dictionary is comparatively easy. As long as you know roughly how to spell the word you can find it with reasonable ease. This is not the case in a dictionary of phrases or idioms.

In an entry of several words it is not always obvious which word in the phrase the entry should come under. The first word is not necessarily the most important, and opinions can vary as to which word is the most important. For speed of reference we have added a good many cross-references to the text of Essential English Phrases. For example, lock the stable door after the horse has bolted is under stable, and at lock and horse there are cross-references to stable. Clarity and ease of reference are the keynotes of Essential English Phrases. The language used in the definitions is easy to understand and the example sentences represent the language of everyday English.

We hope that you will find the book both instructive and entertaining. WEBSTER'S WORD POWER

AAA1 first class, of the highest quality: The produce must be A1. The firm has an A1 staff. ABC basic knowledge: The book sets out the ABC of carpentry. from A to Z thoroughly, comprehensively: They have studied the facts from A to Z. abacktaken aback surprised, disconcerted: She was taken aback when she discovered that he was her cousin. above open, honest and without trickery: His negotiations to get planning permission were all above board. too difficult to understand: Computers are way above his head. too highly respected or thought to be too honourable to be suspected of doing wrong: The police must be above suspicion. to become very vain or conceited: Since his promotion he has got a bit above himself. see weight. accidentaccidents will happen things go wrong at some time in everyones life: Its a pity he broke the vase, but accidents will happen. a series of misfortunes: Their holiday seems to have been a chapter of accidents. accord in keeping with ones beliefs or attitudes: I disapprove of his actions, but he acted according to his lights. of ones own accord of ones own free will, without being forced: He left his job of his own accord. with one accord together, in unison:Next page