The Routledge Dictionary Of Modern American Slang And Unconventional English

The Routledge Dictionary of Modern American Slang offers the ultimate record of modern, post WW2 American Slang. The 25,000 entries are accompanied by citations that authenticate the words as well as offer examples of usage from popular literature, newspapers, magazines, movies, television shows, musical lyrics, and Internet user groups. Etymology, cultural context, country of origin and the date the word was first used are also provided. In terms of content, the cultural transformations since 1945 are astounding. Television, computers, drugs, music, unpopular wars, youth movements, changing racial sensitivities and attitudes towards sex and sexuality are all substantial factors that have shaped culture and language. This new edition includes over 500 new headwords collected with citations from the last five years, a period of immense change in the English language, as well as revised existing entries with new dating and citations. No term is excluded on the grounds that it might be considered offensive as a racial, ethnic, religious, sexual or any kind of slur. This dictionary contains many entries and citations that will, and should, offend. Rich, scholarly and informative, The Routledge Dictionary of Modern American Slang and Unconventional English is an indispensable resource for language researchers, lexicographers and translators.

First published in 2010. A Frequency Dictionary of Contemporary American English: word sketches, collocates, and thematic lists is an invaluable tool for all learners of American English, providing a list of the 5,000 most frequently used words in the language.

This entertaining, highly readable book pulses with the vernacular of young Americans, tracing slang terms and expressions from the end of the 19th century to the present. In addition to alphabetical listings for each decade, it features fascinating word histories and sidebars about language and culture. Great for browsing as well as for reference.

In this pioneering exploration of African American slang - a highly informal vocabulary and a significant aspect of African American English - Maciej Widawski explores patterns of form, meaning, theme and function, showing it to be a rule-governed, innovative and culturally revealing vernacular. Widawski's comprehensive description is based on a large database of contextual citations from thousands of contemporary sources, including literature and the press, music, film and television. It also includes an alphabetical glossary of 1,500 representative slang expressions, defined and illustrated by 4,500 usage examples. Due to its vast size, the glossary can stand alone as a dictionary providing readers with a reliable reference of terms. Combining scholarship with user-friendliness, this book is an insightful and practical resource for students and researchers in linguistics and general readers interested in exploring lexical variation in contemporary English.

Focusing on new reference sources published since 2008 and reference titles that have retained their relevance, this new edition brings O’Gorman’s complete and authoritative guide to the best reference sources for small and medium-sized academic and public libraries fully up to date. About 40 percent of the content is new to this edition. Containing sources selected and annotated by a team of public and academic librarians, the works included have been chosen for value and expertise in specific subject areas. Equally useful for both library patrons and staff, this resource Covers more than a dozen key subject areas, including General Reference; Philosophy, Religion, and Ethics; Psychology and Psychiatry; Social Sciences and Sociology; Business and Careers; Political Science and Law; Education; Words and Languages; Science and Technology; History; and Performing Arts Encompasses database products, CD-ROMs, websites, and other electronic resources in addition to print materials Includes thorough annotations for each source, with information on author/editor, publisher, cost, format, Dewey and LC classification numbers, and more Library patrons will find this an invaluable resource for current everyday topics. Librarians will appreciate it as both a reference and collection development tool, knowing it’s backed by ALA’s long tradition of excellence in reference selection.

The Association for the Study of Play (TASP) (www.tasp.org) is the sponsor of volume twelve in the Play & Culture Studies series. TASP is a professional group of interdisciplinary researchers who study play. Polyphony, defined as having many tones or voices, was used by the Russian philosopher Mikhail Mikhailovich Bakhtin to describe the immense plurality of experiences in relationships. The chapters in volume 12 of Play & Culture Studies address the polyphony or many voices in the study of play from an interdisciplinary cadre of scholars in the fields of anthropology, education, psychology, linguistics, and history. In this time of globalization, hyper-capitalism, and discourses that disqualify children’s play, we invite the reader to participate in diverse ways of thinking about play and pedagogy. To this end, Play, Volume 12 addresses research methodology, contemporary theories, technology, and advocacy. Applications to practice and policy implications are presented.

Thoroughly updated, this is the essential guide to one of the most fundamental fields in the library profession. It links you—and through you, your patrons—to the significant changes that have occurred in reference and information sciences with emphasis on the growth of digital content. • Provides a comprehensive text edited by two highly regarded experts in reference and academic librarianship, Linda C. Smith and Melissa A. Wong, with chapters written by some of the best minds in the library science field • Includes newly updated information that reflects today's realities in reference service with an indication of how reference service may be provided to meet changing patron needs in the future • Encompasses the effective use of print sources, free online sources, and fee-based sources • Features individual chapters that can be used for in-service staff training or in student course packs

Part I. Concepts and Processes, History and functions of reference service: Ethical aspects of reference service; The reference interview; Organization of information and search strategies; Electronic resources for reference; Understanding electronic information systems for reference; Access-related reference services; Instruction; Training and continual learning for reference staff; Evaluation of reference services; Organizing and delivering reference and information services; Reference services for specific populations. -- Part II. Information Sources and their Use: Selection and evaluation of reference sources: Directories; Almanacs, yearbooks and handbooks; Biographical sources; Dictionaries; Encyclopedias; Geographical sources; Bibliographic sources; Index and abstracts; Government information and statistics sources.

This volume provides concise, authoritative accounts of the approaches and methodologies of modern lexicography and of the aims and qualities of its end products. Leading scholars and professional lexicographers, from all over the world and representing all the main traditions andperspectives, assess the state of the art in every aspect of research and practice. The book is divided into four parts, reflecting the main types of lexicography. Part I looks at synchronic dictionaries - those for the general public, monolingual dictionaries for second-language learners, andbilingual dictionaries. Part II and III are devoted to the distinctive methodologies and concerns of the historical dictionaries and specialist dictionaries respectively, while chapters in Part IV examine specific topics such as description and prescription; the representation of pronunciation; andthe practicalities of dictionary production. The book ends with a chronology of the major events in the history of lexicography. It will be a valuable resource for students, scholars, and practitioners in the field.

This revised and updated sixth edition of Reference and Information Services continues the book's rich tradition, covering all phases of reference and information services with less emphasis on print and more emphasis on strategies and scenarios. Reference and Information Services is the go-to textbook for MSLIS and i-School courses on reference services and related topics. It is also a helpful handbook for practitioners. Authors include LIS faculty and professionals who have relevant degrees in their areas and who have published extensively on their topics. The first half of the book provides an overview of reference services and techniques for service provision, including the reference interview, ethics, instruction, evaluation and assessment, and services to diverse populations including children. This part of the book establishes a foundation of knowledge on reference service and frames each topic with ethical and social justice perspectives. The second part of the book offers an overview of the information life cycle and dissemination of information, followed by an in-depth examination of information sources by type-including dictionaries, encyclopedias, indexes, and abstracts-as well as by broad subject areas including government, statistics and data, health, and legal information. This second part introduces the tools and resources that reference professionals use to provide the services described in the first half of the text. Reference and Information Services is a recognized textbook for information retrieval courses and updates the previous edition Editors and contributors are experts in the field Activity boxes engage readers and invite them to reflect on what they are learning and practice skills through real-life exercises Conscious integration of critical theory and social justice perspectives offers critical reflection on the standards and practices of the field and encourages readers to consider alternate perspectives

Professional Wrestling and the Commercial Stage examines professional wrestling as a century-old, theatrical form that spans from its local places of performance to circulate as a popular, global product. Professional wrestling has all the trappings of sport, but is, at its core, a theatrical event. This book acknowledges that professional wrestling shares many theatrical elements such as plot, character, scenic design, props, and spectacle. By assessing professional wrestling as a neglected but prototypical case study in the global business of theatre, Laine argues that it is an exemplary form of globalizing, commercial theatre. He asks what theatre scholars might learn from pro wrestling and how pro wrestling might contribute to conversations beyond the ring, by considering the laboring bodies of the wrestlers, and analyzing wrestling’s form and content. Of interest to scholars and students of theatre and performance, cultural studies, and sports studies, Professional Wrestling and the Commercial Stage delimits the edges of wrestling’s theatrical frame, critiques established understandings of corporate theatre, and offers key wrestling concepts as models for future study in other fields.

“A powerful and timely addition to the literature of rhetoric and folklore.” —Choice In 1860, Abraham Lincoln employed the proverb Right makes might—opposite of the more aggressive Might makes right—in his famed Cooper Union address. While Lincoln did not originate the proverb, his use of it in this critical speech indicates that the fourteenth century phrase had taken on new ethical and democratic connotations in the nineteenth century. In this collection, famed scholar of proverbs Wolfgang Mieder explores the multifaceted use and function of proverbs through the history of the United States, from their early beginnings up through their use by such modern-day politicians as Barack Obama, Hillary Rodham Clinton, and Bernie Sanders. Building on previous publications and unpublished research, Mieder explores sociopolitical aspects of the American worldview as expressed through the use of proverbs in politics, women’s rights, and the civil rights movement—and by looking at the use of proverbial phrases, Mieder demonstrates how one traditional phrase can take on numerous expressive roles over time, and how they continue to play a key role in our contemporary moment.

Token focuses on English linguistics in a broad sense, taking in both diachronic and synchronic work, grammatical as well as lexical studies. That being said, the journal favors empirical research. All submissions are double-blind peer reviewed. Token is the original medium of publication for all articles that the journal prints.

Dictionary of Authentic American Proverbs offers a comprehensive reference guide for distinctly American proverbs. Compiled by Wolfgang Mieder, a key figure in the field of proverb studies, this compendium features nearly 1,500 proverbs with American origins, spanning the 17th century to present day, including a scholarly introduction exploring the history of proverbs in America, the structure and variants of these proverbs, known authors and sources, and cultural values expressed in these proverbs. Along with a comprehensive bibliography of proverb collections and interpretive scholarship, this dictionary offers a glimpse into the history of American social and cultural attitudes through uniquely American language.

This book tells the story of the battles that flared over Baltimore’s attempts to use “hon” to construct a citywide local tradition and their consequences for the future of local culture in the United States.

Despite predictions that commercial mass culture would displace customs of the past, traditions firmly abound, often characterized as folklore. In The Practice of Folklore: Essays toward a Theory of Tradition, author Simon J. Bronner works with theories of cultural practice to explain the social and psychological need for tradition in everyday life. Bronner proposes a distinctive “praxic” perspective that will answer the pressing philosophical as well as psychological question of why people enjoy repeating themselves. The significance of the keyword practice, he asserts, is the embodiment of a tension between repetition and variation in human behavior. Thinking with practice, particularly in a digital world, forces redefinitions of folklore and a reorientation toward interpreting everyday life. More than performance or enactment in social theory, practice connects localized culture with the vernacular idea that “this is the way we do things around here.” Practice refers to the way those things are analyzed as part of, rather than apart from, theory, thus inviting the study of studying. “The way we do things” invokes the social basis of “doing” in practice as cultural and instrumental. Building on previous studies of tradition in relation to creativity, Bronner presents an overview of practice theory and the ways it might be used in folklore and folklife studies. Demonstrating the application of this theory in folkloristic studies, Bronner offers four provocative case studies of psychocultural meanings that arise from traditional frames of action and address issues of our times: referring to the boogieman; connecting “wild child” beliefs to school shootings; deciphering the offensive chants of sports fans; and explicating male bravado in bawdy singing. Turning his analysis to the analysts of tradition, Bronner uses practice theory to evaluate the agenda of folklorists in shaping perceptions of tradition-centered “folk societies” such as the Amish. He further unpacks the culturally based rationale of public folklore programming. He interprets the evolving idea of folk museums in a digital world and assesses how the folklorists' terms and actions affect how people think about tradition.