Richard Lederer (born 1938) is an American linguist, author, speaker, and teacher. He is best known for his books on the English language and on

wordplay Word play or wordplay (also: play-on-words) is a literary technique and a form of wit in which words used become the main subject of the work, primarily for the purpose of intended effect or amusement. Examples of word play include puns, phone ...

such as

pun A pun, also known as a paronomasia in the context of linguistics, is a form of word play that exploits multiple meanings of a term, or of similar-sounding words, for an intended humorous or rhetorical effect. These ambiguities can arise from t ...

s, oxymorons, and

anagram An anagram is a word or phrase formed by rearranging the letters of a different word or phrase, typically using all the original letters exactly once. For example, the word ''anagram'' itself can be rearranged into the phrase "nag a ram"; which ...

s. He has been dubbed "the Wizard of Idiom," "Attila the Pun," and "Conan the Grammarian." His weekly column, "Lederer on Language," appears in the

San Diego San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...

''Union-Tribune'' and his articles are in newspapers and magazines throughout the United States including the ''Mensa Bulletin.'' He was elected International Punster of the Year in 1989 and was the 2002 recipient of the Golden Gavel of

Toastmasters International Toastmasters International (TI) is a US-headquartered nonprofit educational organization that operates clubs worldwide for the purpose of helping people develop communication, public speaking, and leadership skills. History On 24 March 1905, Dr ...

Early life and education

The youngest of five children, Lederer grew up in West Philadelphia. He graduated from

Haverford College Haverford College ( ) is a private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Haverford, Pennsylvania, United States. It was founded as a men's college in 1833 by members of the Religious Society of Fr ...

as a pre-med student. He attended

Harvard Law School Harvard Law School (HLS) is the law school of Harvard University, a Private university, private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1817, Harvard Law School is the oldest law school in continuous operation in the United ...

for one year, then switched to the Master of Arts in Teaching Program at

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

. He taught English and media at the St. Paul's School in

Concord, New Hampshire Concord () is the capital city of the U.S. state of New Hampshire and the county seat, seat of Merrimack County, New Hampshire, Merrimack County. As of the 2020 United States census the population was 43,976, making it the List of municipalities ...

for 27 years until 1989. In 1980, he earned a PhD in Linguistics from the

University of New Hampshire The University of New Hampshire (UNH) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university with its main campus in Durham, New Hampshire, United States. It was founded and incorporated in 1866 as a land grant coll ...

. His

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

parents were from

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

and

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

, and he had a

bar mitzvah A ''bar mitzvah'' () or ''bat mitzvah'' () is a coming of age ritual in Judaism. According to Halakha, Jewish law, before children reach a certain age, the parents are responsible for their child's actions. Once Jewish children reach that age ...

.San Diego Jewish Journal: "Hungry for Words" by Karen Pearlman
June 2010 , ''"The last of five children born to a Jewish mother from Poland and a Jewish father from Bavaria (and the only one in his family to become bar mitzvah)"''

Career

He has written more than 50 books, including ''Anguished English'' books starting in 1987, ''Get Thee to a Punnery'' (1988), ''Crazy English'' (1989), ''The Miracle of Language'' (1992), ''Amazing Words'' (2011), and ''The Joy of Names'' (2018). Known as a "verbivore," a word he coined in the late 1980s, Lederer's interests include uncovering word and phrase origins, pointing out common grammatical errors and fallacies, and exploring

palindrome A palindrome (Help:IPA/English, /ˈpæl.ɪn.droʊm/) is a word, palindromic number, number, phrase, or other sequence of symbols that reads the same backwards as forwards, such as ''madam'' or ''racecar'', the date "Twosday, 02/02/2020" and th ...

s, and other forms of recreational wordplay. His books about various subjects other than language include ''Presidential Trivia'' (2007), ''A Treasury for Cat Lovers'' (2009) and ''A Treasury for Dog Lovers'' (2009), ''The Gift of Age'' (2011), ''A Tribute to Teachers'' (2011), and ''American Trivia'' with Caroline McCullagh (2012). In 1998, he and Charles Elster became the first co-hosts of the weekly radio show, '' A Way with Words'', produced by KPBS, San Diego Public Radio, and broadcast by multiple stations throughout the United States. In October 2006, Lederer retired from ''A Way with Words'' and was replaced by

Grant Barrett Grant Barrett (born 1970) is an American lexicographer, specializing in slang, jargon and new usage, and the author and compiler of language-related books and dictionaries. He is a co-host and co-producer of the American weekly, hour-long public ...

. He continues broadcasting through regular guest appearances on several major market public and Clear-Channel commercial radio stations. Lederer makes more than a hundred appearances each year, many of them benefit performances in San Diego.

Personal life

Lederer and his first wife, Rhoda, have three children:

Howard Lederer Howard Henry Lederer (born October 30, 1964) is an American professional poker player. He has won two World Series of Poker bracelets and holds two World Poker Tour titles. Lederer has also contributed to several books on poker strategy and has ...

and

Annie Duke Anne LaBarr Duke (née Lederer; born September 13, 1965) is an American former professional poker player and author in cognitive-behavioral decision science and decision education. She holds a World Series of Poker (WSOP) gold bracelet from 2004 ...

, both world-renowned poker players, and

Katy Lederer Katherine "Katy" Lederer (born ) is an American poet and author of the memoir ''Poker Face: A Girlhood Among Gamblers''. Early life and education Lederer is the daughter of bestselling non-fiction author Richard Lederer and Rhoda (née Spangenbe ...

, an author and poet. Lederer married Simone van Egeren in 1992.

Publications

Richard Lederer has had over 50 titles published.

Books

* ''Adventures of a Verbivore''—Published by

Pocket Books Pocket Books is a division of Simon & Schuster that primarily publishes paperback books. History Pocket Books produced the first Paperback#Mass market paperback, mass-market, pocket-sized paperback books in the United States in early 1939 and ...

(March 1995) * ''Crazy English''—Published by Gallery Books (June 1998) * ''The Miracle of Language''—Published by Gallery Books (April 1999) * ''A Man of My Words: Reflections on the English Language''—Published by

St. Martin's Press St. Martin's Press is a book publisher headquartered in Manhattan in New York City. It is headquartered in the Equitable Building (New York City), Equitable Building. St. Martin's Press is considered one of the largest English-language publishe ...

(October 2005) * ''Word Wizard: Super Bloopers, Rich Reflections, and Other Acts of Word Magic,'' collection of essays—Published by St. Martin's Press (March 2006) * ''A Treasury for Dog Lovers: Wit and Wisdom, Information and Inspiration About Man's Best Friend''—Published by Howard Books (October 2009) * ''A Treasury for Cat Lovers: Wit and Wisdom, Information and Inspiration About Our Feline Friends''—Published by Howard Books (October 2009) * ''The Gift of Age: Wit and Wisdom, Information and Inspiration for the Chronologically Endowed, and Those Who Will Be''—Published by Marion Street Press (April 2011) * ''A Tribute to Teachers: Wit and Wisdom, Information and Inspiration About Those Who Change Our Lives''—Published by Marion Street Press (September 2011) * ''Amazing Words: An Alphabetical Anthology of Alluring, Astonishing, Beguiling, Bewitching, Enchanting, Enthralling, Mesmerizing, Miraculous, Tantalizing, Tempting, and Transfixing Words''—Published by Marion Street Press (September 2012) * ''Lederer on Language: A Celebration of English, Good Grammar, and Wordplay,'' collection of essays—Published by Marion Street Press (November 2012) * ''The Joy of Names''—Published by Marion Street Press (September 2018)

Children's

* ''Pun and Games: Jokes, Riddles, Daffynitions, Tairy Fales, Rhymes, and More Word Play for Kids''—Published by

Chicago Review Press Chicago Review Press, or CRP, is a U.S. book publisher and an independent company founded in 1973. Chicago Review Press publishes approximately 60 new titles yearly under eight imprints: Chicago Review Press, Lawrence Hill Books, Academy Chicago, ...

(June 1996) * ''The Circus of Words: Acrobatic Anagrams, Parading Palindromes, Wonderful Words on a Wire, and More Lively Letter Play''—Published by Chicago Review Press (May 2001) * ''Wild & Wacky Animal Jokes,'' co-authored with Jim Ertner—Published by Marion Street Press (April 2011) * ''Super Funny Animal Jokes,'' co-authored with Jim Ertner—Published by Marion Street Press (April 2011) * ''Cleverly Comical Animal Jokes,'' co-authored with Jim Ertner—Published by Marion Street Press (April 2012) * ''Rip Roaring Animal Jokes,'' co-authored with Jim Ertner—Published by Marion Street Press (April 2012) * ''Animal Cracker Uppers Jr.,'' co-authored with Jim Ertner—Published by Marion Street Press (November 2013) * ''Monsters Unchained!: Over 1,000 Drop-Dead Funny Jokes, Riddles, and Poems about Scary, Slimy, Slithery, Spooky, Slobbery Creatures''—Published by Marion Street Press (October 2014)

Trivia

* ''Literary Trivia: Fun and Games for Book Lovers''—Published by

Vintage Books Vintage Books is a trade paperback publishing imprint of Penguin Random House originally established by Alfred A. Knopf in 1954. The company was acquired by Random House in April 1960, and a British division was set up in 1990. After Random Ho ...

(November 1994) * ''Classic Literary Trivia''—Published by Gibbs Smith (April 2007) * ''Presidential Trivia''—Published by Gibbs Smith (October 2007) * ''American Trivia: What We All Should Know About U.S. History, Culture & Geography,'' co-authored with Caroline McCullagh—Published by Gibbs Smith (February 2012) * ''American Trivia Quiz Book,'' co-authored with Caroline McCullagh—Published by Gibbs Smith (September 2014)

Puns and Jokes

* ''The Cunning Linguist: Ribald Riddles, Lascivious Limericks, Carnal Corn, and Other Good, Clean Dirty Fun''—Published by St. Martin's Press (December 2003) * ''The Giant Book Of Animal Jokes: Beastly Humor For Grownups,'' co-authored with Jim Ertner—Published by Stone and Scott (February 2006) * ''Get Thee to a Punnery: An Anthology of Intentional Assaults Upon the English Language''—Published by Gibbs Smith (April 2006) * ''The Ants Are My Friends: A Punderful Celebration of Song,'' co-authored with Stan Kegel—Published by Marion Street Press (September 2007)

Bloopers

* ''Anguished English: An Anthology of Accidental Assaults Upon Our Language''—Published by

Bantam Doubleday Dell Doubleday is an American publishing company. It was founded as the Doubleday & McClure Company in 1897. By 1947, it was the largest book publisher in the United States. It published the work of mostly U.S. authors under a number of imprints and ...

(August 1989) * ''More Anguished English: An Exposé of Embarrassing Excruciating, and Egregious Errors in English''—Published by Bantam Doubleday Dell (September 1994) * ''Fractured English''—Published by Gallery Books (November 1996) * '' The Bride of Anguished English: A Bonanza of Bloopers, Blunders, Botches, and Boo-Boos''—Published by t. Martin's Press (July 2002) * ''The Revenge of Anguished English: More Accidental Assaults Upon Our Language''—Published by St. Martin's Press (April 2005)

Holiday

* ''Puns Spooken Here: Word Play for Halloween''—Published by Gibbs Smith (July 2006) * ''Have Yourself a Punny Little Christmas''—Published by Gibbs Smith (July 2006) * ''Hilarious Holiday Humor,'' co-authored with Stan Kegel—Published by Marion Street Press (April 2013)

Language Skills

* ''Theme and Paragraph,'' co-authored with Philip Burnham—Published by

Longman Longman, also known as Pearson Longman, is a publisher, publishing company founded in 1724 in London, England, which is owned by Pearson PLC. Since 1968, Longman has been used primarily as an imprint by Pearson's Schools business. The Longman ...

Publishing Group (June 1976) * ''Basic Verbal Skills,'' co-authored with Philip Burnham—Published by

Publishing Group (June 1980) * ''The Write Way: The S.P.E.L.L. Guide to Real-Life Writing,'' co-authored with Richard Dowis—Published by

(October 1995) * ''Sleeping Dogs Don't Lay: Practical Advice For The Grammatically Challenged,'' co-authored with Richard Dowis—Published by [St. Martin's Press (September 1999) * ''Comma Sense: A Fundamental Guide to Punctuation,'' co-authored with John Shore—Published by St. Martin's Press (August 2005)

Word Games

* ''The Play of Words''—Published by Gallery Books (September 1991) * ''The Word Circus''—Published by Merriam-Webster (January 1998) * ''The Big Book of Word Play Crosswords: 100 Unique Challenging Puzzles for Word Play Lovers'', co-authored with Gayle Dean—Published by Marion Street Press (May 2013) * ''Challenging Words for Smart People: Bringing Order to the English Language''—Published by Marion Street Press (June 2016)

References

External links

Richard Lederer's homepage, "Verbivore"

Goodreads Author page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lederer, Richard 1938 births Living people Linguists from the United States American male writers American people of German-Jewish descent American people of Polish-Jewish descent Schoolteachers from New Hampshire Haverford College alumni Harvard Law School alumni University of New Hampshire alumni Place of birth missing (living people) Mensans Harvard Graduate School of Education alumni