>Well, I'm not at all sure Shakespeare *invented* *any* word. A fascinating book "The Meaning of Everything - the Story of the Oxford English Dictionary" by Simon Winchester (OUP, 2003) states that between 1590 and 1610 around 6,000 new words were being added to the lexicon [more correctly, 'dictionary'] every year. More than at any time in history save possibly now". I grant that this dictionary (I have only the 8 volumes of the New English Dictionary up to 'Shyzle') does not attempt to 'beat the date' exhaustively. But in the last 120 years, not a lot of earlier usages have been found for most words. e.g. none for 'accommodation', Othello 1604; 'laughable' in Merchant of Venice, hyphenations such as 'baby-eyes', 'pall-mall', and 'ill-turned'. Shakespeare was not the only culprit, everyone was doing it. But he can't be beaten yet as earliest for 'dislocate', 'dwindle', 'submerged', etc. And of course "whoreson beetle-headed flap-ear'd knave" (Taming of the Shrew). But the gist of my email was whether the Winter's Tale passage indicates an author other than the man from Stratford, born on 19th April [1564], seven days before the known baptism date of 26th April, 43 miles (40,000 fathoms) from the Bristol Channel. If so, quite a lot of history (or tradition) needs to be re-written. I've submitted this word (forescore as 19) to the OED for inclusion in the forthcoming 3rd edition. John Barton

> >Well, I'm not at all sure Shakespeare *invented* *any* word. > > A fascinating book "The Meaning of Everything - the Story of the Oxford > English Dictionary" by Simon Winchester (OUP, 2003) states that between 1590 > and 1610 around 6,000 new words were being added to the lexicon [more > correctly, 'dictionary'] every year. Shakespeare... can't be > beaten yet as earliest for 'dislocate', 'dwindle', 'submerged', etc. And of > course "whoreson beetle-headed flap-ear'd knave" > > John Barton > All good stuff, John. My point, though (which I didn't make clear, perhaps), was that dictionaries only extremely rarely record the first usage of any word. What they record is the first *documented* usage. A great many ancient dialectal words and usages have been recorded in relatively recent times. It may seem (be!) pedantic to point that out, but I think the distinction is an important one. I have been assured by the occasional academic that certain words - being recorded in, say, 1200 and next in 1600 - fell out of use during that period. Well, not likely. Gordon