provide[s] informative and entertaining browsing, depicting how filled our language is with sports metaphors, many of whose derivations are little known: `the devil to pay,' `hazard a guess,' `red herring,' etc. Even libraries with numerous other sports dictionaries will want this work. Recommended for high school, public, and academic libraries. Choice

This comprehensive dictionary brings together for the first time the popular words and expressions in American English that derive from terms associated with sports, games, and recreation. Many of these terms are now an integral part of the language, with others joining them all the time. The more than 1,700 terms in the dictionary are arranged alphabetically by first word. Full entries follow. At the end of the book a useful appendix classifies the metaphors according to the sports from which they originate.

Each entry in this exhaustive resource contains an example of the popular use of the metaphor, indicating its part of speech; a definition of the metaphor; an identification of the probable source of the term; a definition of the metaphor as used within the sport or game of origin; a citation of other reference works; a discussion of how the term evolved from sports to popular use; and cross-references to other entries. The entries are preceded by a key which decodes the abbreviations used for other reference works and are followed by the source list of metaphors. Sports Talk is an essential resource for teachers, journalists, historians, linguists, etymologists, coaches, and others interested in sports and the language.