Susie Dent

Join Susie Dent, lexicographer extraordinaire and Queen of Countdown's Dictionary Corner, on a curious and exceedingly interesting adventure through all the very best RED HERRINGS, COCK AND BULL STORIES and NINE-DAY WONDERS in the English language. Who was SWEET FANNY ADAMS? What's the dramatic true story behind STEALING THUNDER? Why is it CHANCING YOUR ARM when you take a risk?...

THE INSTANT SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER! 'ONE OF THE FINEST MYSTERIES I HAVE EVER READ' Rob Rinder, Sunday Times bestselling author of The Trial 'A TANTALISING MYSTERY FOR WORD SLEUTHS AND CRIME FANS ALIKE' Janice Hallett, Sunday Times bestselling author of The Appeal A coded letter. A missing woman. A truth waiting to be found. When an anonymous letter is delivered...

Whatever you need, Susie Dent has a word for it. Do you know the name for someone who loves reading in bed, or what a binfluencer does? How about the medieval invention of Lubberland as a place for lazy teenagers, or the story of Mayday as a request for help? Lexicographer extraordinaire and Queen of Countdown's Dictionary Corner, Susie Dent...

A follow-up title to the bestselling Roots of Happiness, this is a beautifully illustrated book from author, broadcaster and word expert, Susie Dent, highlighting 100 words and phrases from the English language and beyond that bring people together. Susie Dent, bestselling author, broadcaster and word expert, is on a mission to find 100 words and phrases to bring people together....

'Susie Dent is a one-off. She breathes life and fun into words and language' — Pam Ayres 'Susie Dent is a national treasure' — Richard Osman Welcome to a year of wonder with Susie Dent, lexicographer, logophile, and longtime queen of Countdown's Dictionary Corner. From the real Jack the Lad to the theatrically literal story behind stealing someone's thunder, from...

'MAGIC' JO BRAND'HAPPIFYING' STEPHEN FRY'SUSIE DENT IS A NATIONAL TREASURE' RICHARD OSMANWhether it's the distress of a bad haircut (AGE-OTORI) or longing for the food someone else is eating (GROAKING), the pleasure found in other people's happiness (CONFELICITY) or the shock of jumping into icy water (CURGLAFF), there are real words to pinpoint exactly how you feel and Susie Dent,...

This is, in fact, not what you were looking for; but it's much more interesting. — Terry Pratchett Much loved for its wit and wisdom since 1870, Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable takes you on a captivating adventure through its trademark blend of language, culture, myth and legend. Nowhere else could the histories of the guillotine and Guinness stout...

A brand-new linguistic mystery from Countdown's resident lexicographer, Susie Dent, set in the city of Oxford AVAILABLE TO PRE-ORDER NOW A mysterious letter. A silenced scholar. A city paved with injustice. When mysterious symbols appear as graffiti around Oxford, lexicographer Martha Thornhill recognises them from an alphabet created by a deceased writer whose papers she once worked on. But this...

A brand-new linguistic mystery from Countdown's resident lexicographer, Susie Dent, set in the city of Oxford AVAILABLE TO PRE-ORDER NOW When mysterious symbols appear as graffiti around Oxford, lexicographer Martha Thornhill recognises them from a runic alphabet created by a deceased fantasy writer whose papers she once worked on. But this is no publicity stunt, and tensions intensify when further...

Whatever you need, Susie Dent has a word for it. Do you know the name for someone who loves reading in bed, or what a binfluencer does? How about the medieval invention of Lubberland as a place for lazy teenagers, or the story of Mayday as a request for help? Lexicographer extraordinaire and Queen of Countdown's Dictionary Corner, Susie Dent...

Did you know that a soldier's biggest social blunder is called jack brew—making yourself a cuppa without making one for anyone else? That twitchers have an expression for a bird that can't be identified—LBJ (the letters stand for Little Brown Job)? Or that builders call plastering the ceiling doing Lionel Richie's dancefloor? Susie Dent does. Ever wondered why football managers...

A beautifully illustrated book from bestselling author, broadcaster and word expert, Susie Dent, highlighting 100 joyful and often unknown words and phrases from our language (and other languages from around the world). Roots of Happiness by Susie Dent explores the light hiding in the deepest, darkest corners of our language. It takes just a short browse through the dictionary to...

The debut murder mystery from the resident genius of Countdown's Dictionary Corner, Susie Dent. An anonymous letter arrives at the offices of the Clarendon English Dictionary containing a challenge for the team of lexicographers working there. It's clear that it's not the usual run-of-the-mill, eccentric enquiry. The letter hints at secrets, lies, and a year: 2010. For Martha Thornhill, the...

Join Susie Dent, lexicographer extraordinaire and Queen of Countdown's Dictionary Corner, on a curious and exceedingly interesting adventure through all the very best red herrings, cock and bull stories and nine-day wonders in the English language. Who was SWEET FANNY ADAMS? What's the dramatic true story behind STEALING THUNDER? Why is it CHANCING YOUR ARM when you take a risk?...