The Oxford English Dictionary has always fascinated me. It's always amazing that people actually know, or think they know, where all these words and phrases came from. It's like an early Wikitionery, as seen through the provided magnifying glass.
This came to mind when I wanted to know the origin of "to wit." Instead of walking across the room to get my copy of the OED, I Googled it. And there is was. And it has been there since 1999.
Kudos to Michael Quinion and his labor of love, "World Wide Words." Unfortunately, he doesn't mention "kudos." But Wikipedia does!
How did we ever do without these tools? I find myself watching TV and wishing I had a laptop at hand to look something up. The Gates Foundation recently recognized the problem by making some pilot grants to libraries that will give them better Internet access.
I think I was born too soon, but at least got a glimpse of the future.
Friday, December 19, 2008
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