Why literally shouldn‎'‎t be taken literally‎.‎ Why Americans think home in on something is a mistake and Brits think hone in is‎.‎ Is it OK to spell OK okay‎?‎ What‎'‎s wrong with hence why‎?‎ Was Alanis Morrisette ever ironic‎?‎ Fowler‎'‎s Dictionary of Modern English Usage is the world‎-famous guide to English usage‎,‎ loved and used by writers‎,‎ editors‎,‎ and anyone who values correct English since it first appeared in 1926‎.‎ Fowler‎'‎s gives comprehensive and practical advice on complex points of grammar‎,‎ syntax‎,‎ punctuation‎,‎ style‎,‎ and word choice‎.‎Now enlarged and completely revised to reflect English usage in the 21st century‎,‎ it provides a crystal‎-clear‎,‎ authoritative picture of the English we use‎,‎ while illuminating scores of usage questions old and new‎.‎ International in scope‎,‎ it gives in‎-depth coverage of both British and American English usage issues‎,‎ with reference also to the English of Australia‎,‎ Canada‎,‎ India‎,‎ New Zealand‎,‎ and South Africa‎.‎ The thousands of authentic examples in the book vividly demonstrate how modern writers tackls debated usage issues‎.‎ They come on the one hand from established literary figures such as Chinua Achebe‎,‎ Peter Ackroyd‎,‎ Raymond Carver‎,‎ Iris Murdoch‎,‎ Harold Pinter‎,‎ and Vikram Seth‎.‎ On the other‎,‎ they are drawn from a vast range of newspapers‎,‎ journals‎,‎ books‎,‎ broadcast material‎,‎ websites‎,‎ and other digital sources from across the globe‎,‎ and include references to topical personalities such as Stephen Fry‎,‎ Prince Harry‎,‎ Jeremy Paxman‎,‎ and Wayne Rooney‎.‎ Based on the evidence and research of the Oxford Dictionaries Programme‎,‎ this is the most comprehensive and authoritative guide to usage available‎.‎