The F-Word

by Jesse Sheidlower, E.J. Koh, Athena Dixon

Book Overview

We all know what frak, popularized by television's cult hit Battlestar Galactica, really means. But what about feck? Or ferkin? Or foul--as in FUBAR, or "Fouled Up Beyond All Recognition"?

In a thoroughly updated edition of The F-Word, Jesse Sheidlower offers a rich, revealing look at the f-bomb and its illimitable uses. Since the fifteenth century, no other word has been adapted, interpreted, euphemized, censored, and shouted with as much...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0195393112
• ISBN13: 9780195393118
• Release Date: September 2009
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
• Length: 322 Pages
• Weight: 1.08 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 5.6" x 7.9"

Customer Reviews

A fantastic item of lexicon with great linguistic value.

The F-Word: Second Edition adds nice aesthetic touches and adds more uses of the infamous taboo word F***. An excellent book that I highly recommend to everyone whether or not you become easily offended.

F'in fabulous reference for the lexicon geek

Thanks to ADHD, I have a hard time focusing for any length of time on the written word, but I love reference books and I love the English language. I have numerous lexicons from American Slang, to quotations, scientific dictionaries, etc. This one is not for the kids, but it has come in helpful a number of times. I used to feel pretty hip, but now that my teen years are far behind me, I no longer know everything - and I am really feeling like an old codger when I hear a new phrase on TV or in a movie I've never heard before.If someone has remolded the "F-word" into another word or phrase, it's in this little dictionary. Almost an encyclopedia of the F-word. Each entry gives an approximate date of usage (some usages are timeless, and used for over a hundred years, some are over a hundred years old and just aren't used at all. If the phrase or word first showed up in a book or movie, that reference is also given. Examples are cited and the origins of how each word evolved (as appropriate) are also noted.As needed, a listing will note if it is a colloquialism for an age group, racial group, sexual lifestyle group, etc.I had no idea what Stevie Wonder's song "Bad Mamma Jamma" meant until reading the definition in this text!The illustrations are clever, and surprisingly not vulgar, considering what book they are in. This is far more than just a snicker-fest - although you can sit down and read it and giggle here & there, it is truly a reference book for American slang at its worst.

A delightful dictionary!

I can't imagine wanting to sit down and read any other dictionary from cover to cover. A fun and informative read that manages to bring scholarly rigor to its slangy subject.

Never thought such a weird book could be so fascinating!

If you're the type who has actually sat reading a dictionary, you'll love this book. I had no idea this word had such a rich history or variety of usage! As a teacher of English to speakers of other languages, I would heartily recommend this to my students, as many have no idea how powerful this word is - or how many things it can (dangerously) mean.

the first and last word on this world-class Word. . .

The F Word. . .proves to be a rare item indeed: a comprehensive, vastly eclectic, tongue-in-cheek serious treatment that has to be the first and last word on this world-class Word. For the curious layperson, it will be a source of amazement and information, a good deal of it funny. As reviewed by Benedict B. Kimmelmann, in the Summer 1996 (Vol. XXIII, No. 1) issue of VERBATIM, The Language Quarterly.