{"schema_version":"bf_book_companion_v1","release_id":"20260529T161654Z","book":{"amazon_purchase_url":"https://www.amazon.com/dp/1399808214?tag=bookfrontier-20","asin":"1399808214","authors":["Jess Zafarris"],"book_id":"9781399808217","canonical_url":"https://bookfrontier.com/books/words-from-hell-1399808214","cover_image_url":"https://img.bookfrontier.com/9781399808217.jpg?v=20260529T161654Z%3A2026-05-29T17%3A17%3A38Z","description":"The English language is where words go to be tortured and mutilated into unrecognizable shadows of their former selves. It's where Latin, Greek, and Germanic roots are shredded apart and stitched unceremoniously back together with misunderstood snippets of languages snatched from the wreckage of conquest and colonialism. It wreaks merciless havoc upon grammar and spelling. It turns clinical terms into insults and children's tales into filthy euphemisms. With an emphasis on understanding where the foulest words in the English language came from-and the disgusting and hilarious histories behind them-this book demonstrates the true filth of our everyday words. But this book is more than just a list of vulgar words and salacious slang. It's a thoughtful analysis of why we deem words as being inappropriate as well as revealing 'good words' that have surprisingly naughty origins. Dirty-minded word nerds and lewd linguistics lovers will derive unadulterated pleasure in leering at the origins of swear words, sexual lingo, inappropriate idioms, violent vocabulary, and terminology for bodily functions-not to mention the unexpectedly foul origins of words you thought were perfectly innocent. If it's inappropriate, stomach-churning, uncomfortable, or offensive, this book reaches into the dark recesses of history and exposes them for all to see. True to the Chambers brand, this book combines humor, scholarly research and a beautiful design. It is a book to enjoy, collect and revisit time and time again.","forthcoming":false,"isbn13":"9781399808217","publication_date":"20240924","publisher":"Hachette Mobius","slug":"words-from-hell","subtitle":"Unearthing the Darkest Secrets of English Etymology","title":"Words From Hell"},"discovery":{"categories":{"all":[{"bisac_code":"LAN009010","confidence_band":"medium","label":"Historical Linguistics","score":0.7666,"source":"bisac_hint_model"},{"bisac_code":"LAN009050","confidence_band":"medium","label":"Sociolinguistics","score":0.7644,"source":"bisac_hint_model"},{"bisac_code":"LAN005060","confidence_band":"medium","label":"Writing Nonfiction & Memoir","score":0.7139,"source":"bisac_hint_model"}],"hint":[{"bisac_code":"LAN009010","confidence_band":"medium","label":"Historical Linguistics","score":0.7666,"source":"bisac_hint_model"},{"bisac_code":"LAN009050","confidence_band":"medium","label":"Sociolinguistics","score":0.7644,"source":"bisac_hint_model"},{"bisac_code":"LAN005060","confidence_band":"medium","label":"Writing Nonfiction & Memoir","score":0.7139,"source":"bisac_hint_model"}],"publisher":[{"bisac_code":"LAN009010","confidence_band":"high","label":"Historical Linguistics","score":1,"source":"onix_publisher_code"},{"bisac_code":"LAN024000","confidence_band":"high","label":"Linguistics / Etymology","score":1,"source":"onix_publisher_code"}]},"genres":[{"label":"Historical Linguistics","score":0.7666,"slug":"historical-linguistics"},{"label":"Sociolinguistics","score":0.7644,"slug":"sociolinguistics"},{"label":"Writing Nonfiction & Memoir","score":0.7139,"slug":"writing-nonfiction-memoir"}],"reader_fit":["Good for readers interested in etymology and word origins","those fascinated by the history of vulgar and taboo language"],"related_lists":[],"series":null,"similar_books":[{"authors":["Gabriel Wyner"],"book_id":"9780593797495","cover_image_url":"https://img.bookfrontier.com/9780593797495.jpg?v=20260529T161654Z%3A2026-05-29T17%3A17%3A38Z","score":17.1999,"title":"Fluent Forever","url":"https://bookfrontier.com/books/9780593797495"},{"authors":["Anne Lamott"],"book_id":"9780385480017","cover_image_url":"https://img.bookfrontier.com/9780385480017.jpg?v=20260529T161654Z%3A2026-05-29T17%3A17%3A38Z","score":16.1951,"title":"Bird by Bird","url":"https://bookfrontier.com/books/9780385480017"},{"authors":["Thomas C Foster"],"book_id":"9780062301673","cover_image_url":"https://img.bookfrontier.com/9780062301673.jpg?v=20260529T161654Z%3A2026-05-29T17%3A17%3A38Z","score":15.5484,"title":"How to Read Literature Like a Professor Revised Edition","url":"https://bookfrontier.com/books/9780062301673"},{"authors":["Beth Hicks","Jenni Nuttall","Penguin Audio","& 0 more"],"book_id":"9780593299579","cover_image_url":"https://img.bookfrontier.com/9780593299579.jpg?v=20260529T161654Z%3A2026-05-29T17%3A17%3A38Z","score":14.5467,"title":"Mother Tongue","url":"https://bookfrontier.com/books/9780593299579"},{"authors":["Laura Spinney"],"book_id":"9798260201831","cover_image_url":"https://img.bookfrontier.com/9798260201831.jpg?v=20260529T161654Z%3A2026-05-29T17%3A17%3A38Z","score":13.9741,"title":"Proto","url":"https://bookfrontier.com/books/9798260201831"},{"authors":["Ursula K. Le Guin","David Naimon"],"book_id":"9781638934677","cover_image_url":"https://img.bookfrontier.com/9781638934677.jpg?v=20260529T161654Z%3A2026-05-29T17%3A17%3A38Z","score":12.2016,"title":"Ursula K. Le Guin: Conversations on Writing","url":"https://bookfrontier.com/books/9781638934677"},{"authors":["Tom Heehler"],"book_id":"9781402243059","cover_image_url":"https://img.bookfrontier.com/9781402243059.jpg?v=20260529T161654Z%3A2026-05-29T17%3A17%3A38Z","score":12.0344,"title":"The Well-spoken Thesaurus","url":"https://bookfrontier.com/books/9781402243059"},{"authors":["Merriam-Webster"],"book_id":"9780877790952","cover_image_url":"https://img.bookfrontier.com/9780877790952.jpg?v=20260529T161654Z%3A2026-05-29T17%3A17%3A38Z","score":11.6819,"title":"The Merriam-webster Dictionary","url":"https://bookfrontier.com/books/9780877790952"}],"topics":[],"what_you_get":["Themes: language history, taboo and vulgarity, linguistic humor.","Pacing: mixed tempo with quieter and high-intensity stretches.","Reading lane: Historical Linguistics and Sociolinguistics."]},"llm_signals":{"confidence":0.9,"pacing":"mixed","reader_fit":["readers interested in etymology and word origins","those fascinated by the history of vulgar and taboo language"],"themes":["language history","taboo and vulgarity","linguistic humor"],"tropes":[]},"source_presence":{"amazon":true,"book_detail":true,"goodreads":true,"llm_signals":true,"similarity_seed":true},"stats":{"amazon_ratings_count":212,"goodreads_ratings_count":181,"goodreads_reviews_count":44,"quality_score":0.9021}}