English Summary/英文概要： What’s in a word? A lot, as In A Word tells us. As words travel through time they evolve—taking on new characteristics,new meanings, and providing fascinating stories of people, places,and times long ago. Compiled from Calliope® magazine’s monthly word column, each of the 750 entries of In A Word tells its tale in a witty short-story style, often accompanied by fun illustrations.Though several of the entries in the book provide the kind of linguistic details found in the finest dictionaries, the lively,anecdotal style and witty illustrations of In A Word make it more entertaining than a traditional reference book.

Chinese Summary/中文概要： 一个单词包含着什么意义呢？本书将会告诉我们。词汇历经了时代的变迁，被赋予了新的特性和含义，它们为很久以前的人，地方和时期谱写了一个个令人疯狂着迷的故事。本书取材于Callipoes杂志每月一刊的单词专栏，书中的750个单词以一个个诙谐、幽默的短故事形式和有趣、漂亮的插图，来详细说明了词的历史和用法。而书中对于词条的解释都来源于最好的词典，亦给予我们最精确的语言信息。生动、活泼的故事和诙谐、可爱的插图使本书比其他传统的语言类参考书更具有娱乐性和可看性，是一本极佳的语言类丛书。