num_pages: 180
description: From the creator of the popular A.Word.A.Day e-mail newsletter   A collection of some of the most interesting stories and fascinating origins behind more than 300 words, names, and terms by the founder of WordSmith.org.  Did you There’s a word for the pleasant smell that accompanies the first rain after a dry spell?  Petrichor , combining  petros  (Greek for  stone ) and  ichor  (the fluid that flows in the veins of Greek gods).  An  illeist  is one who refers to oneself in the third person.  There’s a word for feigning lack of interest in something while actually desiring   accismus .  For any aspiring  deipnosophist  (a good conversationalist at meals) or devoted  Philomath  (a lover of learning), this anthology of entertaining etymology is an ideal way to have fun while getting smarter.
language: English
title: The Dord, the Diglot, and an Avocado or Two: The Hidden Lives and Strange Origins of Common and Not-So-Common Words
titlecomplete: The Dord, the Diglot, and an Avocado or Two: The Hidden Lives and Strange Origins of Common and Not-So-Common Words
genres: Writing, Books About Books, Reference, Linguistics, Science, Nonfiction, Language, Words, History
ratings_count: 213
publisher: Plume Books