DICTIONARY OF PHRASE & FABLE

"The Wordsworth Dictionary of Phrase and Fable" explains the origins of thefamiliar and the unfamiliar in everyday speech and literature, includingthe colloquial and the proverbial, and embracing archaeology, history,religion, the arts, science, mythology and characters from fiction. Thisvaluable dictionary, which revises and updates the original work of Dr.Ebenezer Cobham Brewer, encompasses material from all over the Englishspeaking world and cites many equivalents from other European countries.The inclusion of quotations which accompany and illustrate many of theentries adds hugely to the value of this legendary work of reference.