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Site title: Useless Etymology – offbeat word origins for curious minds
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The following is an excerpt from the book Useless Etymology: Offbeat Word Origins for Curious Minds.
A fossil word is a word that primarily appears in the context of phrases or idioms. It typically comes attached to other words. The phrase survives even when the word itself becomes antiquated and rarely appears on its own.
I’m delighted to announce the impending arrival of my third etymology book, Useless Etymology: Offbeat Word Origins for Curious Minds, featuring quirky, charming, and humorous word origin stories for lovers of all things lexical. This lovely little blue book, published by Hachette’s John Murray Press, will be released in hardcover on Oct. 7 in the United Sta...
