We all know them... The things in life that we all experience, but which don't necessarily have a name.This is a dictionary of those things.Ely: The feeling that something, somewhere has just gone horribly wrong.As an added twist, each of the words defined in the meaning of Liff is actually a placename somewhere in the world. Many of them are actually various odd village names from the UK (there are plenty, I live about five miles from 'Six Mile Bottom'!), but there are plenty from further afield too.One of the great things about this book however, is that its one of those that you can dip into for just a couple of minutes. A quick read before turning out the light at night, and you don't have to remember a narrative (useful for the very tired!)I do think that there should be a concerted campaign to make some of the more useful entries into words in common usage. ( )

Ungeahnte Schätze schlummern in den tausenden Orts- und Städtenamen Deutschlands und der Welt. Wofür könnte man diese unzähligen Worte alle verwenden, anstatt sie nur in Atlanten und auf Ortsschilder zu schreiben! Schließlich gibt es genug Dinge und Situationen, die sich mit unserer beschränkten Sprache zwar umständlich beschreiben, aber nicht in einem Wort ausdrücken lassen. Douglas Adams schafft mit diesem Wörterbuch Abhilfe, wunderbar witzig übersetzt von Sven Böttcher.

Einige Kostproben:

Zähringen, das: Schlußteil eines Telefongesprächs, der aus ungefähr acht kurzen Erwiderungen besteht, mit deren Hilfe die Gesprächspartner möglichst würdevoll aus der Leitung zu kommen versuchen.

Gera (Adj.): Ein bißchen verbogen, also gerade krumm genug, um völlig unbrauchbar zu sein. Gerae Schlüssel erhält man bei jedem Billig-Schlüsseldienst.

Neuss (Adj.): Nicht wirklich neu. Beschreibt den Zustand von Produkten, die lautstark als "Jetzt mit verbessertem Geschmack/Wirkungsgrad" oder einfach nur "Neu" angepriesen werden, obwohl sich weder ihre Zusammensetzung noch sonst etwas geändert hat.

Pflummern (V.): Im Bett liegen, darauf warten, daß der Wecker klingelt, und urplötzlich von der Erkenntnis getroffen werden, daß er das eigentlich schon vor mindestens einer Stunde hätte tun müssen.

Zum Wegschmeißen. Und besonders nett vom Verlag: die englischen Originalbegriffe und -definitionen sind auch enthalten. ( )

This book has proved enormously useful in convincing people that I am stark raving nutter. When I use words such as "grimbister", "skagway" or "Mavis Enderby", people know I am a person to be reckoned with.
I've read this book cover to cover numerous times, it is a wonderful "bathroom reader", always finding new words for things I already knew but didn't know there was a word for.
I wish DNA were about today to provide sequels to this wonderful bit of silliness. ( )

I can read this book with a straight face. But not for long. Sooner or later one of the definitions will make me laugh. This one seems apposite:

"Ripon (vb.) (Of literary critics) To include all the best jokes from the book in the review to make it look as though the critic thought of them."

And everyone should instantly start using this one, at least as a tribute to the author:

"Scethrog (n.) One of those peculiar beards-without-moustaches worn by religious Belgians and American scientists which help them look like trolls."
MB 1-x-2007 ( )

This book takes a whole load of place names that are just sitting about not being used and gives them meanings for things that haven't really been given a proper word of their own. For example, Great Wakering is the feeling you have when you need to use the WC urgently but can't because you can't make up your mind what book to take in there with you. Something I'm sure all Library Thingers go through occasionally. ( )