The Numbers
Shakespeare
invented
more than
1,600
English words.
Feeling at a loss for words?
Then take a page out of the
Bard's book. "English simply
couldn't accommodate all
of the things Shakespeare
needed to say," explains
Felicia Londré, a theater
professor at the University
of Missouri-Kansas City.
"So he borrowed words,
changed words, and gave
new meaning to words," in
addition to conjuring up his
own. While you have Will
to thank for terms like bandit,
laughable, and zany, not
all of his contributions have
survived. Among the many
casualties: John-a-dreams
(an idle muser) and disliken
(to disguise). A lost lexical
legacy? We're speechless.
46 SPIRIT APRIL 2014
PHOTOGRAPHY BY ADAM VOORHES
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Spirit Magazine - April 2014