Languages grow and develop in many different ways. Some words follow a straightforward route from Latin, through French into English, some follow a far more complicated path. CASSELL'S DICTIONARY OF WORD HISTORIES offers a clear and absorbing guide to this labyrinth of connections. Arranged in an easy-to-use format and drawing on the most authoritative sources, it gives the date of each word's first appearance in the English language and, where appropriate, details its development from origin to current usage.