About the Book
Please note that the content of this book primarily consists of articles available from Wikipedia or other free sources online. Pages: 55. Chapters: Geoffrey Chaucer, English words first attested in Chaucer, Chaucer coming in contact with Petrarch or Boccaccio, The Wife of Bath's Tale, Prologue and Tale of Beryn, The Miller's Tale, Pierce the Ploughman's Crede, Nicholas Colfox, The Plowman's Tale, The Franklin's Tale, Chanticleer and the Fox, The Reeve's Tale, The Prioress's Tale, The Merchant's Tale, The Pardoner's Tale, The Pilgrim's Tale, The Parson's Tale, Scribe D, The Man of Law's Tale, The Clerk's Tale, The Nun's Priest's Tale, The Summoner's Tale, Harley MS. 7334, The Squire's Tale, The Canon's Yeoman's Tale, Ellesmere Chaucer, The Friar's Tale, Hengwrt Chaucer, The Knight's Tale, The Monk's Tale, General Prologue, The Shipman's Tale, Chaucer's Tale of Sir Topas, The Cook's Tale, The Second Nun's Tale, The Physician's Tale, Adam Pinkhurst, The Tale of Melibee, Chaucer's Retraction, The Manciple's Tale, Jack Upland, Senex amans, God Spede the Plough. Excerpt: English words first attested in Chaucer are a set of about two thousand English words that Geoffrey Chaucer is credited as being the first use found today in existing manuscripts. This does not mean that he was the person to introduce these words into English, but that the earliest extant uses of these words are found in Chaucerian manuscripts. The words were already in everyday speech in 14th century England (especially London) and other parts of Europe. The claim is that these words are found for the first time in written manuscripts where he introduced them in one of his extensive works from 1374 - 1400 as the first author to use these particular words. Many of Chaucer's special manuscript words from the 14th century are used today: absent, accident, add, agree, bagpipe, border, box, cinnamon, desk, digestion, dishonest, examination, finally, flute, funeral, galaxy, horizon, infect, ingot, latitude...
