Free eBooks The Dimwit's Dictionary, 3rd Edition Available To Downloads
Whereas a witticism is a clever remark or phrase -- indeed, the height of expression -- a "dimwitticism" is the converse; it is a commonplace remark or phrase. Dimwitticisms are worn-out words and phrases; they are expressions that dull our reason and dim our insight, formulas that we rely on when we are too lazy to express what we think or even to discover how we feel. The more we use them, the more we conform -- in thought and feeling -- to everyone else who uses them. The Dimwit's Dictionary, Third Edition, is a compilation of thousands of dimwitticisms (clichés, colloquialisms, idioms, slang, and the like) that people speak and write unendingly. "Mr. Fiske is, in short, a fanatic, an extremist who apparently believes that clear language is our only hope for clear thought, that dull language deadens the mind and dampens the imagination, that a felicitous phrase is good news, that a strong prose style is a gift to be cultivated and cherished, that nothing, no, nothing in the world exceeds language in its significance to the human enterprise. As it happens, I believe in all this, too, which makes it an honor to salute a fellow fanatic and wish him and his book the great good fortune both deserve." -- From the foreword by Joseph Epstein
Paperback: 252 pages
Publisher: Marion Street Press, LLC; 3rd edition (September 1, 2012)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1933338989
ISBN-13: 978-1933338989
Product Dimensions: 5 x 0.6 x 8.9 inches
Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
Best Sellers Rank: #978,450 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #196 in Books > Reference > Dictionaries & Thesauruses > Thesauruses #942 in Books > Reference > Words, Language & Grammar > Reference #3010 in Books > Textbooks > Humanities > Literature > Creative Writing & Composition
The Tagline for the book is More than 5000 overused words and phrases and alternatives to them. This in a nutshell is what the book does. But please do not be fooled into thinking this book is simple or would not be useful. It is a pure nugget amongst many books for writers.The book is divided into two parts:Part 1 - gives examples of the hackneyed phrases which have slipped into everyday English. It then goes on to explain why these are tired and outdated. It then goes on to talk about the different forms of English - uneducated, everyday and elegant - and how these can be improved.Part 2 - The bulk of the book is given over to this. This is where the 5000 words and phrases come in. These are provided in alphabetical order for easy reference. It is a simple matter to look up a phrase and the suggestions for words which could replace it. I am going to open up the book at random and give an example:Feeling his oats - This is classed as a moribund metaphor. Suggested replacements - exuberant, frisky, lively peppy, vigorous, vivaciousThe appendix at the end gives the top 20 Dimwiticism's (overused phrases) in the presses of the world. This is a real eye opener (that's not classed as a dimwiticism in the book: and is also a bit of fun.So all in all an excellent resource for any writer.
I had a hard copy of this book and recently added it to my Kindle for what I thought would be greater convenience. Unfortunately, that's not so. The Kindle edition lacks a proper Table of Contents. Each alphabet needs an individual section and there are none. Consequently, to find a phrase or word in the book I have to search throughout to find what I'm looking for. The publisher needs to format the book correctly, as a dictionary, with individual sections for each alphabet. When that is done I'll give the book five stars. Without that feature it's just a pain in the derriere (foreign word, as classified in the DD)
I bought this book after coming across it when searching the term "in spite of, or perhaps because of," which is possibly my least favorite phrase in the language.I haven't read through the entire thing, yet, but I have read enough that when my wife says things to me like "there's no such thing as never" I point out that she is saying a dimwiticism.I'll tell you this much: I may recognize a dimwiticism when I hear one, but calling my wife a dimwit? That's dimwitted!
Basically worthless - slightly interesting from an historical perspective only
Excellent. Every writer i.e. every civilized person should have a copy.
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