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A Word In Your Shell-Like by Nigel Rees
An entertaining guide to the wonderful world of phrases—new and old, familiar and unfamiliar. Unravel the meaning, origin, and usage of 6,000 phrases—from books, films, idioms, euphemisms, and clichés to nicknames, slogans, and quotations. For Who was originally "sold down the river?" Why is an exact likeness "the spitting image?" Who originally coined the term "compassion fatigue?" The author should put a "feather in his cap" for compiling this delightfully informative guide—it's a must for anyone who likes to dabble in our language's rich heritage.
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First published May 2, 2006
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About the author
Nigel Rees
136 books9 followersNigel Rees is an English author and presenter, best known for devising and hosting the Radio 4 long running panel game Quote... Unquote (since 1976) and as the author of more than fifty books – reference, humour and fiction.
He went to the Merchant Taylors' School, Crosby, and then took a degree in English at New College, Oxford (where he was a Trevelyan Scholar and took a leading role in the Oxford University Broadcasting Society). He went straight into television with Granada in Manchester and made his first TV appearances on local programmes in 1967 before moving to London as a freelance. He worked for ITN’s News at Ten as a reporter before becoming involved in a wide range of programmes for BBC Radio as reporter and producer.
In 1971, he turned to presenting. He introduced the BBC World Service current affairs magazine Twenty Four Hours nearly a thousand times between 1972 and 1979. From 1973 to 1975 he was also a regular presenter of Radio 4’s arts magazine Kaleidoscope. From 1976 to 1978 he was the founder presenter of Radio 4’s newspaper review Between the Lines and, from 1984 to 1986, Stop Press.
By way of contrast he kept up the revue acting he had started at Oxford by appearing for five years in Radio 4’s topical comedy show Week Ending... and then in five series of the cult comedy The Burkiss Way. Comedy appearances have also included Harry Enfield and Chums on BBC TV.
When he was 32, in 1976, he became the youngest ever regular presenter of Radio 4’s Today programme and had two years of early mornings with Brian Redhead before leaving in May 1978 at the time of his marriage to Sue Bates, a marketing executive. The other reason was the increasing success of Quote... Unquote, his quiz anthology on Radio 4, then in its third series. By 1978 it was also time for the first Quote... Unquote book. This gave rise to a whole series under various titles and devoted to aspects of the English language and especially the humour that derives from it. One of his five graffiti collections was a No. 1 paperback bestseller in the UK.
His reference books include the Cassell’s Movie Quotations, Cassell’s Humorous Quotations, A Word In Your Shell-Like and Brewer's Famous Quotations. Since 1992, he has published and edited The Quote... Unquote Newsletter, a quarterly journal (now distributed electronically) and devoted to the origins and use of well-known quotations, phrases and sayings.
For 18 years he was a regular guest in Dictionary Corner on Channel 4's Countdown. He is a recent past President of the Johnson Society (Lichfield) and was described in The Spectator (16 December 2006) as: "Britain's most popular lexicographer – the lineal successor to Eric Partridge and, like him, he makes etymology fun."
He went to the Merchant Taylors' School, Crosby, and then took a degree in English at New College, Oxford (where he was a Trevelyan Scholar and took a leading role in the Oxford University Broadcasting Society). He went straight into television with Granada in Manchester and made his first TV appearances on local programmes in 1967 before moving to London as a freelance. He worked for ITN’s News at Ten as a reporter before becoming involved in a wide range of programmes for BBC Radio as reporter and producer.
In 1971, he turned to presenting. He introduced the BBC World Service current affairs magazine Twenty Four Hours nearly a thousand times between 1972 and 1979. From 1973 to 1975 he was also a regular presenter of Radio 4’s arts magazine Kaleidoscope. From 1976 to 1978 he was the founder presenter of Radio 4’s newspaper review Between the Lines and, from 1984 to 1986, Stop Press.
By way of contrast he kept up the revue acting he had started at Oxford by appearing for five years in Radio 4’s topical comedy show Week Ending... and then in five series of the cult comedy The Burkiss Way. Comedy appearances have also included Harry Enfield and Chums on BBC TV.
When he was 32, in 1976, he became the youngest ever regular presenter of Radio 4’s Today programme and had two years of early mornings with Brian Redhead before leaving in May 1978 at the time of his marriage to Sue Bates, a marketing executive. The other reason was the increasing success of Quote... Unquote, his quiz anthology on Radio 4, then in its third series. By 1978 it was also time for the first Quote... Unquote book. This gave rise to a whole series under various titles and devoted to aspects of the English language and especially the humour that derives from it. One of his five graffiti collections was a No. 1 paperback bestseller in the UK.
His reference books include the Cassell’s Movie Quotations, Cassell’s Humorous Quotations, A Word In Your Shell-Like and Brewer's Famous Quotations. Since 1992, he has published and edited The Quote... Unquote Newsletter, a quarterly journal (now distributed electronically) and devoted to the origins and use of well-known quotations, phrases and sayings.
For 18 years he was a regular guest in Dictionary Corner on Channel 4's Countdown. He is a recent past President of the Johnson Society (Lichfield) and was described in The Spectator (16 December 2006) as: "Britain's most popular lexicographer – the lineal successor to Eric Partridge and, like him, he makes etymology fun."
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
April 12, 2021
An impressive and enjoyable encyclopaedic work, but the description ‘6,000 curious & everyday phrases explained’ is a bit of a misnomer. A more accurate description would be: ‘the graveyard of dead music-hall catch-phrases’. Because those make up an awful lot of the book, and many are by no means ‘everyday phrases’ anymore.
Still, in terms of the social and cultural history of the English-speaking world (and occasionally beyond as well), this one is full of anecdotal nuggets you’re unlikely to find collected anywhere else.
Because I can resist anything except temptation (dixit Wilde), I will give in to the urge to share a few examples:
- When Thurgood Marshall was retiring from the U.S. Supreme Court in 1992, he was asked at a press conference, ‘How do you feel?’ He replied, ‘With my hands’.
- In 1988, a graffito in Dublin announced: ‘Because of the present economic situation, the light at the end of the tunnel will be switched off at weekends.’
- The family that prays together stays together: slogan, devised by Al Scalpone (sic) of the Roman Catholic Rosary Crusade in the USA.
- Cloud nine: the derivation appears to be from terminology used by the US Weather Bureau. Cloud nine is the cumulonimbus, which may reach 30-40,000 feet.
- The Old Grey Whistle Test: the practice of trying new pop songs out on elderly grey-haired doormen. If they could pick up the tune to the extent of being able to whistle it, the song stood a chance of being successful.
- Tiswas: short for ‘Today is Saturday, wear a smile’.
Still, in terms of the social and cultural history of the English-speaking world (and occasionally beyond as well), this one is full of anecdotal nuggets you’re unlikely to find collected anywhere else.
Because I can resist anything except temptation (dixit Wilde), I will give in to the urge to share a few examples:
- When Thurgood Marshall was retiring from the U.S. Supreme Court in 1992, he was asked at a press conference, ‘How do you feel?’ He replied, ‘With my hands’.
- In 1988, a graffito in Dublin announced: ‘Because of the present economic situation, the light at the end of the tunnel will be switched off at weekends.’
- The family that prays together stays together: slogan, devised by Al Scalpone (sic) of the Roman Catholic Rosary Crusade in the USA.
- Cloud nine: the derivation appears to be from terminology used by the US Weather Bureau. Cloud nine is the cumulonimbus, which may reach 30-40,000 feet.
- The Old Grey Whistle Test: the practice of trying new pop songs out on elderly grey-haired doormen. If they could pick up the tune to the extent of being able to whistle it, the song stood a chance of being successful.
- Tiswas: short for ‘Today is Saturday, wear a smile’.
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August 16, 2008A Word in Your Shell-Like: 6,000 Curious & Everyday Phrases Explained by Nigel Rees (2007)
November 16, 2014
wonderful book a book that you can just dip into. I did find it interesting where the sayings came from.
May 14, 2010
A book about words, phrases and their origins. Nothing you would read cover to cover, but it's a fun read anytime you open it:-)
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews