The Word Museum: The Most Remarkable English Words Ever Forgotten by Kacirk, Jeffrey - 2000

Touchstone, 2000. Fine. Kacirk has written a new book on the same theme as his last book, Forgotten English, gathering hundreds of words that have slipped from common usage. By searching old dictionaries and glossaries, he has compiled words that ap peal to him based on their sound (although there is no pronunciation guide) , show either endearing or humorous aspects of their times, or illustrate c ustoms. The result is this lark of a book, sure to appeal to all who love w ords and the sounds they make. In this Aladdin's cave of vocabulary are wor ds like "bouffage" (very satisfying), "ugsumness" (terribleness), "snirp" ( shrink), and "maffle" (stutter). The work may be of use to academic librari es where there is strong interest in lexicography, for, in addition to the words and definitions, there is a lengthy bibliography.