By Marietta Dunn 

For years at The Philadelphia Inquirer, all new copy editors were given "Words on Words," by John Bremner, a somewhat quirky -- but always memorable -- book on grammar and language.

Bremner, who was a journalism professor at the University of Kansas, decided that his students were deficient in these areas, and he didn't see how they could become writers and editors without learning to care about the words they used. 

His dictionary of sorts was published in 1980 and accomplishes what so many other grammars fail to do -- it is a reference that captivates the reader with its clarity and humor. The entries are actually fun to read, and its explanations stay with you. 

At one time the book was out of print, but, for several years now, it has been available in paperback. Because it was published more than 20 years ago, some of the humor may seem a little dated. And there is really no reason that I can see for Bremner's decision to discuss the etymology of some words over others. These criticisms, though, are minor when compared with what the book offers. 

The book includes many of the standard entries: As/Like, It's/Its, Antecedents, Pronouns, Conjunctions, Fused Participles, Headlinese, That/Which, etc. But it also includes some unusual words and terms, with a discussion of how they came to be. For instance, few language books would deal with the term "roundballer," for basketball player. But since KU is mad for the sport, it makes sense that Bremner incorporated it, with the caveat that many more sports than basketball use round balls. He also explains the origin of such obscure terms as "Buridan's ass" (as in donkey) and "lagniappe" (a gift). 

An example of Bremner's cleverness can be seen in the entry for Grisly/Grizzly (mixing up the two words is a common writing error for some reporters). Bremner writes: "A gruesome site is GRISLY. Hair flecked with gray is GRIZZLY. Some bears are grizzly. Being attacked by a grizzly bear is grisly and may turn your hair grizzly." 

For me, the book is worth the price if only for its section on Cliches. To make his point, Bremner writes the opening paragraph of the section as cliche after cliche. It begins: "Busy as a beaver all day, he was tired as a dog when he hit the hay that night." I used this entry to illustrate cliches for the staff at The Inquirer, and it is so humorous that I got positive responses from editors and reporters, as well as copy editors. The humor makes the point perfectly and takes the edge off the criticism. 

Bremner died in 1987, but left behind a wonderful legacy in this book. As he wrote in the introduction: "To love words, you must first know what they are." 

Marietta Dunn is the former AME/Copy Desks at The Philadelphia Inquirer