Usage and Abusage cover

Usage and Abusage

by Eric Partridge

Usage and Abusage is a classic that has stood up well to the passage of time. But language does evolve over the years, and new problems (such as the use of "hopefully") and current topics (such as "sexism") have engendered a whole new vocabulary, which cannot be omitted from any book discussing the English of the 1990s. In this new edition, Janet Whitcut has revised Partridge's popular reference book to reflect the language of well-informed writers, readers, and speakers today. In addition, she has added a section to the book entitled Vogue Words, which includes words such as "crash" "symbiotic," and "viable" that have acquired a power and an influence beyond those that they originally possessed. Usage and Abusage wittily attacks linguistic abusage of all kinds and offers constructive advice on the proper use of English.

More by Eric Partridge

Chappie’s discussion starters

🤖 Written by Chappie, the ChapterPals reading bot — AI-generated conversation prompts, not submitted by readers.

  1. Which character stayed with you after you turned the last page, and why?
  2. Was there a moment where you disagreed with a character’s choice? What would you have done?
  3. What theme did this book keep circling back to — and did it earn its ending?
  4. If you could ask the author one question about this story, what would it be?
  5. Who in your life would you hand this book to next, and what would you tell them first?