Chambers Dictionary of Etymology

This is the first review I have written, but I felt it necessary to correct a false statement in another review, particuarly since 28 of 32 people found the review (which gave the book only 1 star) helpful. Specifically, QUOTE A lot of the words don't go back to the real origin. "Street' for example is said to be derived from the Latin "Strata" or "paved road", when the Latin actually comes from the Semitic, "Serat" for "straight road".UNQUOTE Semitic "Serat" (also Arabic "Sirat") comes from Latin (via Greek as an intermediary) not the other way around as asserted by the reviewer. There is simply no doubt about this. As pointed out in the Chambers Dictionary, "Strata" is the past participle of the Latin verb STERNERE ("to lay down", "to spread out") which shares a common INDO-EUROPEAN origin with the Germanic root which is the basis of English STREW. I have not seen ANY etymological dictionary that has a different explanation, and I have consulted authoritative ones in English, French, Spanish, Italian and German. In English, this origin is confirmed by, among others, (i) the Oxford English Dictionary, (ii) the American Heritage Dictionary of Indo-European Roots. A second comment of the same reviewer was QUOTE The dictionary also lists many languages that use a specific word without telling us about the source of the word, which is what etymology is about.UNQUOTE In fact, my impression is that the Chambers Dictionary gives far more information than other comparable etymological dictionaries in terms of the ultimate roots of words. Taking a word at random, for "make", Old English macian is traced back through Old Saxon makon to Proto-Germanic *makojanan from the Indo-European root *mag-. It is also shown to be cognate with Old High German mahhon, Old Frisian makia, Greek magenai ("to be kneaded, be molded") and mageus ("baker"), Old Slavic mazati ("anoint"), among others. The Chambers Dictionary is one of the best I have seen, particularly in view of its not unreasonable price.

Speedy delivery and really does look and feel brand new and unused. Not even a crease or catch in the paper sleeve. Very pleased.

Words..What are they ? Sounds formed from the mouth to give understanding. What are they though ?From whence do they come ? This book will tell you over 30,000 explanations of origin of words meanings and Historical context which can be relevant to today if you know what your looking for. Not entirely sure of the accuracy of some of the explanations because put simply,I was not there,neither were you.Ergo,words,what are they ?

Excellent.

I bought this dictionary for a friend. As far as I know he is very happy with the content and condition. He is using it for an Etymology study group.

This is a dream book for wordsmiths who like to know where words come from and how they have reached comtemporary usage. Ordinary dictionaries pale in comparison. Every user of words should have a dictionary of etymology!

Chambers are simply unbeatable. Recently treated myself to their dictionaries and thesaurus. The wordsmiths' wordsmith.

Bought as Xmas present for my daughter as she is very interested in the origin of words and their use. She is very pleased and I know it will be well thumbed.

Looks Good

Es gibt nicht viele englischsprachige Etymologien. Im Vergleich zu den übrigen (die mir bekannt sind) ist Chambers die beste, wenn nicht sogar die herausragende ihrer Art. Kann ich nur empfehlen.

The Barnhart concise dictionary of etymology をversion up した米国の語源辞典である。「見やすいし、良い辞典だと感じるのだが、寺澤さんの研究社「語源辞典」をそのまま英訳したような本なので寺澤「語源辞典」以上に薦める気にはならない。」と初めは感じていたのだが、逆に、寺澤語源辞典が、その多くをChambersのこの辞典に負っているのかもしれません。寺澤の結構、→記号が多い説明を、十分言葉で説明していて、英語で学ぶ人には多いに薦めます。見出し語は、寺澤がやや多いが、説明はChambersの方が豊か。アルファベット順での一語一語の説明辞典です。買って損にはならない。

Un diccionario etimológico es indispensable en cualqueir investigación. Este diccionario es nutrido, tiene muchas entradas y de muy fácil uso.

Superb resource and friend on a rainy day. This is my 3rd purchase of this wonderful work of words. Its like a dictionary but it is not a dictionary as you know it. WHY? Because it is ABOUT THE WORDS, not just what the word means. And the things you learn as you read about where/why a word became what it did and how it did is amazing knowledge that turns on your brain, twelve levels at least, thinking simultaneously and causing you to miss dinner! So if you've got a kid who reads words, uses words and stuns you sometimes with words... this IS the GIFT OF A LIFETIME, no matter the time of year. I've given this tome to a twelve year old and a college kid. The twelve year old was at the beach and stayed inside two days reading words until I hid the book from her! I know this disease, and had sympathy.... but she lives in Colorado and never sees a beach! Its addictive to the right kid and will change their life, or at the bery least, help with their future SAT's and law school prep.