Concise Oxford English Dictionary

The act of composing dictionaries, lexicography, was seen as peculiar; however, men such as Samuel Johnson and Noah Webster dared to defy such ideologies. Both men had their own reasons for taking on the daunting challenge of writing a dictionary of the English Language. Their reasons may greatly differ such as Webster’s motivation of strengthening the national identity and Johnson’s reason of standardizing words with his witty definitions. Despite of their different motives for defining words, Samuel

Many Americans due to the fact that they have been in America they believe that the English language is easier to master than another language. Moreover, U.S college students believes that since they speak English frequently throughout the day they have mastered the English language. However, this may sound like common sense but it not true. Studies “from the U.S Department of Education shows that many high school seniors are graduating unable to read at grade level and one in four cannot read at

The term ‘’ signs ‘’ is defined by Oxford English Dictionary (2007), as ‘’ a characteristic device attached to or placed in front of an inn or shop, as a means of distinguishing it from others or directing attention to it; in later use commonly a board bearing a name or other inscriptions, with or without some ornament or picture’’. People have to communicate in order to explain their feelings and ideas, or understand the things that others convey since the human is social animate. Language is the

authorship. Alastair Pennycook, as a linguist who specializes in English language, showed that plagiarism would put writers’ authorship at stake. In this essay I will argue that, notwithstanding the earnest ethical endeavor people have made, there is an irreversible trend in the fading of the authorship from the aspects of postmodern actualities, power relations in society, and the essence of language

Different animals have different grouping names and to most people it seems like just a random selection of how the group name was formed. When ravens group together it is called an unkindness, when lion get together it is called a pride and when tigers get together it is called an ambush. Lions and Tigers seem very similar but have different group names. One is “pride” which means “high or inordinate opinion of one's own dignity, importance, merit, or superiority” and ambush means “an act or instance

Before the birth of Internet, most of individuals communicated through the utilisation of telephone, in person or letters. Though, accordingly to the fast development of social networking sites such as Twitter and Facebook, that has took place over the last 3-4 years, is indicative of its entry into our personal lives. Social media has led to the most significant changes in the way we communicate with each other and the linguistics we currently utilise. Phone texting over social media is also a rapid

The term “bitch” was first used to describe women in the fourteenth century, but before that it was used to describe a female dog (Bayley, P2). The slang word for bitch is a term for an undesirable woman with a high sex drive. Society back then (and now) is afraid of female sexuality. Calling a woman a bitch suggests that she is the same as a dog in heat. Right from the start, the word was used to dehumanize women and to shame us for being sexual beings. A bitch is subjugated, on the bottom. Being

start with “gaudy,” simply because of its modern connotation to mean something is showy, or tasteless in its ornateness. In the context of this poem, this word did not have such a connotation, so as it appears to mean, simply, “luxurious” (Oxford English Dictionary). Keeping this is in mind as one looks at the context of the tulip at this time, it is clear that this simple comparison to a flower actually as much more meaning to it than at first glance. Just before swift’s time the tulip caused a financial

Empowerment: Empowerment is to give one power and authority, making them feel in control of their thoughts and actions. It is to make a person feel stronger and more confident, especially in claiming their rights and controlling their life. In other words, empowerment provides one with motivation to be independent and self-reliant. The word "empower" is of French and Latin derivation, consisting of the prefix “em-”, which means to cause a person or thing to be in a place or condition, and the noun

A sweatshop is defined as a factory where manual workers are employed at very low wages for long hours in unsafe working environments (Oxford Dictionary, 2011). Sweatshops are especially associated with clothing industries, such as Nike, Gap, Walmart, Primemark and other brand names. Sweatshop history begins in 1830 with clothing factories in New York City and London, even then the working conditions were poor, e.g. rat infestation. Since the 1850s worker unions have improved “sweatshops” conditions