A well-researched but still easily digestible book about the etymology of some of our most commonly used words. The author thoroughly covers the salacious words expected from a book titled "Words from Hell" and very common words with extremely unexpected origins (see: vanilla, shark, dragon). I appreciate that the author doesn’t present the work as just a list of words but provides such great research while also infusing her personality. Favorite quote: “Clitoris: Congratulations, you’ve found it!” If that doesn’t want to make you read this I don’t know what will. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing this advanced reader copy.

As someone who is fascinated by etymology, this was so fun. It’s broken down into a few main chapters that form general categories (for example: swear words, supernatural words, violence words, etc.) and then each chapter is an alphabetical list of many terms and a brief explanation of their origin. Some words have clear histories, and some have multiple theories, and the author did a good job making the difference clear.
If you’re a word nerd who loves stuffing their brain with little fun facts, you’ll definitely enjoy this! (As long as you don’t mind reading lots of crude language, because that’s literally the topic of the book)

Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC!

A Smorgasbord..
A veritable smorgasbord of linguistic delights in this well researched, often amusing and always fascinating book of words, meanings and mash ups. The real meanings of the foulest sounding words, the horrible histories of often everyday language and from the downright inappropriate to the outright sublime. It’s all here in well ordered and entertaining fashion.

Words from Hell is a wickedly humorous exploration of the English language. It explores the origins and history of the lewd, vulgar, and salacious as well as words that are not as innocent as they appear.

Super fascinating, my favorite section was on the etymology of horror, witchcraft, and the supernatural. But truly every chapter was chock full of great and easily digestible information. The blend of in depth information on etymology, history and humor keep this book interesting. It’s a real delight for word nerds, people who enjoy trivia and people interested in the darker aspects of language.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you, Jess Zafarris and NetGalley, for the ARC. I leave this review voluntarily and happily. Also, thank you publishers for your hard work!

If you live words and learn about them, this certainly is for you. Of course, this book is more than that it's about the dirty, nasty, and absolutely terrible words in our history. Some that can't be repeated. This book is absolutely full of facts from how they were created to their multiple meanings. It had me laughing to gasping in horror. I can not believe how some of these words came to be, then againhow can I not? History truly was strange and horrid at times.

I do admit it did take me some time to read through this book as it seemed to drag on. I enjoyed learning what it had to offer, but Etymology is not for me. It's not my future. This book did give me valuable information and some I will be sharing with my friends.

Who knew there were so many cuss words out there. Some that I might even be able to use now properly. Thank you once again for allowing me to read this ARC

I am a language lover and have always adored exploring the roots and origins of words, so Jeff Zafarris’ “Words from Hell: The Darkest Secrets of English Etymology,” immediately interested me. From the first page to the last, I laughed-out-loud, as well as squirmed some, as I read with enthusiasm the vocabulary definitions and historical contexts of lurid, filthy-mouthed swear words, so commonly spoken in today’s world.

This highly detailed, well-documented, and extraordinarily referenced work, also includes extensive examples of offensively pejorative slang phrases and slurs of ethnic, religious, racial, sexual, and gender identity (these also too offensive to list). Almost 300-pages in length, Zafarris provides origins and contexts on many other word categories: gender, sexuality, war, horror, alcohol, and witchcraft to name a few.

Although considered an entertainment book of humor and satire, this is a particularly useful reference document; however, read it with an open-mind because the contents are graphic, jarring and XXX-rated. This is not for the squeamish nor the prudish because the contents are explicit and many are sexually-oriented.

Nonetheless, for literary purposes, this is a fabulous source of rare material and includes an extensive bibliography for reference.

TheBookMaven graciously thanks NetGalley, Author Jeff Zafarris, and Publisher Hachette an imprint of Chambers Books for this advanced reader’s copy (ARC) for review.

4 ⭐️

This is the perfect book to prepare yourself to “Ackchyually…” your friends. Your friends will then hate you and you will no longer have any friends. In short, this is a book to study if you want more alone time.

All jokes aside. I found this to be an interesting book where I could discover where the more colorful words in our language came from.

I would recommend this to anyone who has an interest in language and writing.


**Thank you, NetGalley and Hachette, Chambers Books for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.**

I enjoyed this book. It was a well-written, fun read. The etymologies are thorough and explain a lot, including unpaired words (words commonly used with a prefix or suffix but not alone). This cleared up a lot of mysteries for me. Zafarris has a good sense of humor that comes clearly through. I recommend this book for people who love learning about languages. Thank you to Netgalley and Chambers Books for the advance reader copy.

This wasn't my typical reading choice, but it was a fun one!

It's educational, but the topic and the writing were both entertaining. The author’s tone was fun and light even while talking about the Germanic origin of a word or breaking out a quote from the 1800s. The book made the information understandable and interesting.

I'd recommend this one!

Zafarris has created a veritable feast of language and etymology, mostly focused on words we commonly think of as vulgar or profane (or have otherwise less than positive connotations). This book was an interesting look at where these words that we use today came from, and how some of them changed in use and meaning over time. English has long been known as a language that pulls and steals from many others, and we see some of that in action here.

While I enjoyed the idea of the book, in the end, it didn't quite solidify for me in execution. There were a few times when the author seemed to have a lot of fun adding in words as descriptors that did not actually add anything to the narrative. There were also points where it felt like reading a textbook and not something geared toward a wider audience.

If you are a fan of history, a fan of language, or a fan of reading about "naughty" words, this book will be for you. There is quite a bit here that will satisfy the craving for word aficionados to learn something new about terms they may not think twice about using in daily life.

This was a fascinating and often surprising read. We (the adults, not the children this time, obviously) spent the better part of the week quoting our favourite works from the book.

My thanks to both NetGalley and the publisher Chambers Books for an advance copy of this book dealing with the history, the use and corruption of certain words, and how some still have a stigma today that is hard to use in polite society.

One of my biggest regrets is that I am not a fluent speaker of any language. Not even of the language that was spoken in my home, that I have been taught in and use at work all the time. English. This language is still a mystery to me. I still have to remember my there, their and they're, I before E accept after C, all the things that Schoolhouse Rock instilled in me before I went to school and forgot everything. Though when I first started working in Waldenbooks the book Anguished English by Richard Lederer, was a popular title, and Dell Publishing came out with a whole series of books on words that I devoured, and somehow retained. Though I can't spell them, and probably are not using them right. So I have always loved books on words. And now I think I have a new Gosh Dang favorite in Words From Hell:Unearthing the Darkest Secrets of English Etymology by writer and word fiend Jess Zafarris. The book goes into the history of words that can be used to be both profane, and supernatural, violent, anatomically descriptive and much more.

The book begins with a introduction that discusses the author's pas in writing books about word origins for young readers, and moving up to words that children would have their mouths washed out with soap for using. From there we look at word origins, with an overview of language, and how words are brought in, adapted or corrupted and move on. The book is then broken into 10 chapters dealing with words that could be used as obscenities, words about the body, words about war, the human nature for bias and bigotry, booze and drugs, and of course spicy words about spicy things and descriptions. These chapters have brief preamble, followed by an alphabetical listing of words to fit the section. For example Assassin in Chapter Eight. The word is presented with a history of where it came from, prominent uses, how the word has been corrupted, and use today, with examples.

A very fun look at language, and language that is usually pooh-poohed by most, but as the political discussion becomes more course, it helps to understand where these words are coming from, and more importantly, how to use them. Zafarris is very funny, and a very good writer which helps keep that narrative moving. Books like this can get in its own way with just lists that seem daunting to the reader. I suggest one shouldn't just sit down and read this, more look at it a section at a time, and let the words soak in. This way one can learn how to incorporate these words into one's vernacular be it telling a boss off, or getting cut off in traffic.

A good gift for a friend that uses a lot of blue language as a way to increase their verbiage, and hopefully make them laugh. This is both a wonderful reference, and a fun book to flip through, and I found it quite enjoyable, and laughed a lot. Again a nice gift for certain people at the holidays.

A great gift for any linguist or anyone interest in the history of bad words. I thought the balance between brief histories of the word and the inclusion of the false associated histories of the word was really interesting. Sections are great nugget sizes that make it easy to dip in and out of.