Lexicology is about words, their meanings and the relationships between them, their origins and their structure. It combines the study of derivational morphology with lexical semantics. This textbook explores the history, meanings and structure of words, the way they are collected in dictionaries and the way they are stored in our minds. It goes beyond examining the morphological structure of words to examine the way words are spelt and the way they sound. At every stage, the book focuses not only on description, but also on the puzzles that words present. Supported by numerous examples, exercises, discussion questions, suggestions for further reading and a glossary, this is an accessible and lively guide to the linguistic study of English through the consideration of words.

Bauer’s comprehensive and highly accessible introduction provides an essential resource for students as well as for colleagues teaching English language courses. Rather than foregrounding categories and terminology, it takes a problem-orientated, yet systematic approach. It teases out interesting and tricky aspects throughout, while providing essential lexicological knowledge and terminology alongside. -- Melani Schroeter, University of Reading

Laurie Bauer is Professor of Linguistics at the Victoria University of Wellington. He is on the editorial board of the journal Word Structure.