The Amazing Secrets of the Phrases We Use Everyday Phraseology is the ultimate collection of everything you never knew about the wonderful phrases found in the English language. It contains information about phrase history and etymology; unusual, lost, or uncommon phrases; how phrases are formed; and more than 7,000 facts about common English phrases. Practical enough to be used as a reference book but so fun that every book lover will want to read it straight through, Phraseology contains such engrossing tidbits as: ACROSS THE BOARD is an allusion to the board displaying the odds in a horse race - ARTESIAN WELL gets its name from Artois, where such wells were first made - BEST MAN originated in Scotland, where the groom kidnapped his bride with the aid of friends, including the toughest and bravest - the best man. Dr. Barbara Ann Kipfer is the author of more than 30 books, including the bestselling 14,000 Things to Be Happy About and several Roget’s Thesaurus’. She is the managing editor/chief lexicographer for Dictionary.com, Thesaurus.com and Reference.com and has worked for such companies as Answers.com, Ask Jeeves, idealab, Mindmaker and Knowledge adventure. She lives in Ivoryton, Connecticut.