Author: David Crystal

We are living through the consequences of a linguistic revolution. Dramatic linguistic change has left us at the beginning of a new era in the evolution of human language, with repercussions for many …

We are living through the consequences of a linguistic revolution. Dramatic linguistic change has left us at the beginning of a new era in the evolution of human language, with repercussions for many …

This new edition includes the introduction of the WHO distinctions between impairment, disability and handicap; an increased focus on information processing approaches to language disorders, and the …

This new edition includes the introduction of the WHO distinctions between impairment, disability and handicap; an increased focus on information processing approaches to language disorders, and the …

This is the fully revised and expanded second edition of English – One Tongue, Many Voices, a book by three internationally distinguished English language scholars who tell the fascinating, improbabl …

David Crystal’s A Dictionary of Linguistics and Phonetics has long been the standard single-volume reference for its field. Now available in its sixth edition, it has been revised and updated to refl …

David Crystal’s A Dictionary of Linguistics and Phonetics has long been the standard single-volume reference for its field. Now available in its sixth edition, it has been revised and updated to refl …

This book brings together twelve previously unpublished language profiles based on the original Language Assessment, Remediation and Screening Procedure (LARSP). The languages featured are: Afrikaans …

This book brings together 12 previously unpublished language profiles based on the original Language Assessment, Remediation and Screening Procedure (LARSP). The languages featured are: Bangla, Croat …

This collection is a resource book for those working with language disordered clients in a range of languages. It collects together versions of the well-known Language Assessment Remediation Screenin …

A delightfully discursive, Bill Bryson-esque and personal journey through the groves and the thickets of the English language, by our foremost scholar of the history and structure of the English lang …

David Crystal, one of the world’s leading commentators on language, tackles the proverbs of the world. In this anthology of global proverbs Crystal brings his customary keen eye and linguistic expert …

Did you know that the English language has over 150 words for the adjective ‘drunk’ developed over 1, 000 years? Be prepared to learn words you have never heard before, find out fascinating facts beh …

Did you know that the English language has over 150 words for the adjective ‘drunk’ developed over 1, 000 years? Be prepared to learn words you have never heard before, find out fascinating facts beh …

This book takes a long hard look at the text-messaging phenomenon and its effects on literacy, language, and society. Young people who seem to spend much of their time texting sometimes appear unable …

‘What grammarians say should be has perhaps less influence on what shall be than even the more modest of them realize …’ No book had more influence on twentieth-century attitudes to the English lan …

Lynne Truss’s ‘Eats, Shoots and Leaves’ injected new life into the long-standing arguments over rights and wrongs in English usage. Now David Crystal brings together his own distinctive style and uni …

Words, Words, Words is all about the wonder of words. Drawing on a lifetime’s experience, David Crystal explores language in all its rich varieties through words: the very building blocks of our comm …

What do the following have in common?Let there be light – A fly in the ointment – A rod of iron – New wine in old bottles Lick the dust – How are the mighty fallen – Kick against the pricks – Wheels …

What do the following have in common?Let there be light – A fly in the ointment – A rod of iron – New wine in old bottles Lick the dust – How are the mighty fallen – Kick against the pricks – Wheels …

‘What grammarians say should be has perhaps less influence on what shall be than even the more modest of them realize …’ No book had more influence on twentieth-century attitudes to the English lan …

This book takes a long hard look at the text-messaging phenomenon and its effects on literacy, language, and society. Young people who seem to spend much of their time texting sometimes appear unable …

Wordsmiths and Warriors explores the heritage of English through the places in Britain that shaped it. It unites the warriors, whose invasions transformed the language, with the poets, scholars, refo …

Wordsmiths and Warriors explores the heritage of English through the places in Britain that shaped it. It unites the warriors, whose invasions transformed the language, with the poets, scholars, refo …

This dictionary is the first comprehensive description of Shakespearean original pronunication (OP), enabling practitioners to deal with any queries about the pronunciation of individual words. It in …

This dictionary is the first comprehensive description of Shakespearean original pronunication (OP), enabling practitioners to deal with any queries about the pronunciation of individual words. It in …

Lynne Truss’s ‘Eats, Shoots and Leaves’ injected new life into the long-standing arguments over rights and wrongs in English usage. Now David Crystal brings together his own distinctive style and uni …

It’s the most simple, unassuming, innocent-looking verb: ‘to be’. Yet it is jam-packed with more different meanings, forms, and uses than any other English word. As he reveals be’s multiple incarnati …

It’s the most simple, unassuming, innocent-looking verb: ‘to be’. Yet it is jam-packed with more different meanings, forms, and uses than any other English word. As he reveals be’s multiple incarnati …

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A many-faceted exploration of spoken eloquence: how it works, how it has evolved, and how to tap its remarkable power We all know eloquence when we hear it. But what exactly is it? And how might we g …

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For decades, people have been studying Shakespeare’s life and times and in recent years there has been a renewed surge of interest in aspects of his language. So how can we better understand Shakespe …

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For decades, people have been studying Shakespeare’s life and times and in recent years there has been a renewed surge of interest in aspects of his language. So how can we better understand Shakespe …

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Kidnapping, attempted assassination, espionage … not the answers you’d expect to the question ‘what happens when you become a linguist?’ But now, reflecting on a long and hugely successful career at …

Kidnapping, attempted assassination, espionage … not the answers you’d expect to the question ‘what happens when you become a linguist?’ But now, reflecting on a long and hugely successful career at …

A series to meet the need for books on modern English that are both up-to-date and authoritative.For the scholar, the teacher, the student and the general reader, but especially for English-speaking …

A series to meet the need for books on modern English that are both up-to-date and authoritative.For the scholar, the teacher, the student and the general reader, but especially for English-speaking …

The Internet is now an integral part of contemporary life, and linguists are increasingly studying its influence on language. In this student-friendly guidebook, leading language authority Professor …

The Internet is now an integral part of contemporary life, and linguists are increasingly studying its influence on language. In this student-friendly guidebook, leading language authority Professor …

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A groundbreaking history of worldwide English in all its dialects, differences, and linguistic delights: "Informative . . . distinctive . . . a spirited celebration." -The Guardian In this …

This ‘engaging history of punctuation’ (Wall Street Journal) is not only the first history of its kind, but a complete guide on how to use English punctuation. Behind every punctuation mark lies a th …

The world’s greatest authority on language explains the secrets and subtleties of the grammar of English. David Crystal explores its history and varieties, explains its rules and irregularities and s …

It’s not what you say, it’s the way that you say it … There have long been debates about ‘correct’ pronunciation in the English language, and Britain’s most distinguished linguistic expert, David C …

This book brings together 12 previously unpublished language profiles based on the original Language Assessment, Remediation and Screening Procedure (LARSP). The languages featured are: Bangla, Croat …

Featuring Latinate and Celtic words, weasel words and nonce-words, ancient words (‘loaf’) to cutting edge (‘twittersphere’) and spanning the indispensable words that shape our tongue (‘and’, ‘what’) …

Why is there an ‘h’ in ghost? William Caxton, inventor of the printing press and his Flemish employees are to blame: without a dictionary or style guide to hand in fifteenth century Bruges, the types …

This collection is a resource book for those working with language disordered clients in a range of languages. It collects together versions of the well-known Language Assessment Remediation Screenin …

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This volume is one in a series of monographs being issued under the general title of "Disorders of Human Communication". Each monograph deals in detail with a particular aspect of vocal com …

When and why did ‘thou’ disappear from Standard English? Would a Victorian Cockney have said ‘observation’ or ‘hobservation’? Was Jane Austen making a mistake when she wrote ‘Jenny and James are walk …

Samuel Johnson’s Dictionary, published in 1755, marked a milestone in a language in desperate need of standards. No English dictionary before it had devoted so much space to everyday words, been so t …

In this fascinating survey of everything from how sounds become speech to how names work, David Crystal answers every question you might ever have had about the nuts and bolts of language in his usua …

Learning to talk is probably the greatest milestone in a child’s development: a deeply moving and often hilarious experience for all parents. In this charming and informative book, Britain’s leading …

This compilation, in the tradition of the Victorian miscellany, gathers together essential facts and fascinating insights into the plays and poems, the man behind them (insofar as this is known), and …

This is the definitive survey of the English language – in all its forms. Crystal writes accessibly about the structure of the language, the uses of English throughout the world and finally he gives …

A vital resource for scholars, students and actors, this book contains glosses and quotes for over 14, 000 words that could be misunderstood by or are unknown to a modern audience. Displayed panels l …

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From an acclaimed linguist, “part travelogue, part memoir, and part meditation on the intellectual and emotional underpinnings of language. . . . Priceless.” (Booklist …

Desde las primeras palabras de un niño hasta el peculiar dialecto moderno de los mensajes de texto, ‘El pequeño libro del lenguaje’ abarca una amplia gama de temas, revelando las complejidades y pecu …

Words, Words, Words is all about the wonder of words. Drawing on a lifetime’s experience, David Crystal explores language in all its rich varieties through words: the very building blocks of our comm …

Banter, chit-chat, gossip, natter, tete-a-tete: these are just a few of the terms for the varied ways in which we interact with one another through conversation. David Crystal explores the factors th …

Banter, chit-chat, gossip, natter, tete-a-tete: these are just a few of the terms for the varied ways in which we interact with one another through conversation. David Crystal explores the factors th …

This book brings together twelve previously unpublished language profiles based on the original Language Assessment, Remediation and Screening Procedure (LARSP). The languages featured are: Afrikaans …

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An absolutely joyous, gasp-out-loud achievement. – Stephen Fry A cathedral of consciousness – Shakespeare’s uncanny insight into human nature finds us, unearthed here. – Lion Heart, artist, poet, and …

The fully updated new edition of the essential single-volume reference, covering the full fields of linguistics and phonetics Now in its seventh edition, A Dictionary of Linguistics and Phonetics rem …

The fully updated new edition of the essential single-volume reference, covering the full fields of linguistics and phonetics Now in its seventh edition, A Dictionary of Linguistics and Phonetics rem …

The final volume in the classic trilogy on the English language combines the first history of English punctuation with a complete guide on how to use it.Behind every punctuation mark lies a thousand …

In early 2012, the global scientific community erupted with news that the elusive Higgs boson had likely been found, providing potent validation for the Standard Model of how the universe works. Scie …