The clear and easy way to get a handle on the science of speech. The science of how people produce and perceive speech, phonetics has an array of real-world applications, from helping engineers create an authentic sounding Irish or Canadian accent for a GPS voice, to assisting forensics investigators identifying the person whose voice was caught on tape, to helping a film actor make the transition to the stage. Phonetics is a required course among...

Uses colorful illustrations to demonstrate examples of "wordles," or wordplay phrases that sound alike but have different meanings, including "I see" and "icy," and "I scream" and "ice cream."

"Grasping the intricacies of the English language doesn't need to be tricky, and this down-to-earth guide breaks everything down in ways that make sense--Revealing rules, tips, and tricks to eliminate confusion and gain clarity, English Grammar For Dummies gives you everything you need to communicate with confidence! Good grammar lays the foundation for speaking and writing clearly. This easy-to-follow book will help you become a more articulate,...

This lecture looks at how we define and categorize words into parts of speech, and considers the fascinating ways in which words expand or move into new categories. Study how we characterize nouns, verbs, adverbs, and their syntax, and delineate the difference between a phrase, a clause, and a sentence.

"Joe can't find his sister Moe. Maybe her notes will tell him where to go!"-- Provided by publisher.

Combines personal reflections, historical allusions, and traveler's observations about the author's encounters with language and its users throughout the English-speaking world

Here's some good news for everyone who's ever been bullied into believing they can't speak their own language: The grammar snobs are bluffing. Half the "rules" they use to humiliate others are really just judgment calls and the rest they don't even understand themselves. Grammar Snobs Are Great Big Meanies is a laugh-out-loud funny collection of anecdotes and essays on grammar and punctuation, as well as hilarious critiques of the self-appointed language...

The Queen's English has no place across the pond, where a long history of defiance, creativity, and originality has made its way into the everyday vocabulary of Americans coast-to-coast. God Bless America is an informative and entertaining guide to the meaning and history beneath our uniquely American words and phrases. Robert Hendrickson makes it clear that whether you're ordering "fried chicken" or heading out to see a "movie," you are celebrating...

Robert McCrum, coauthor of the best-selling book and television series The Story of English, shows how the language of the Anglo-American imperium has become the world's lingua franca. --from vendor description