Review | A harmless drudge looks at the changing face of word-defining
Kory Stamper has worked for Merriam-Webster for almost 20 years, and her reflection on life at the word face is a blast
by Kory Stamper
Pantheon Books
“When’s the last time you bought a dictionary?” asks Kory Stamper. “I thought so.” So it’s no surprise to learn that the lexicographer is a dying breed – the kind of person Samuel Johnson, the unofficial patron saint of the profession, once defined as “a harmless drudge”. Little seems to have changed, despite dictionaries having moved online and amateur definers helping to keep things current. Stamper, who joined Merriam-Webster in 1998, describes a work environment that would defeat the most committed of word lovers: she and her colleagues toiled in near silence, no phones to distract them, and entirely alone. It wasn’t enough simply to arrive at good definitions (such as “contemptibly small” for measly). Lexicographers like her had to parse English as it is used, and classify words within sentences by their function. Everyday grammar, she points out, is “useless” when confronting oddities such as “the”, which has been entered as an adjective since the 19th century. Eschewing bombast, Stamper reveals how even the most illogical words (think “irregardless”) have come to be included in dictionaries, and how “love” can cause a wobble. This book is a blast. Take my word for it.