This textbook is a readable introduction to lexicology and corpus linguistics. Starting with a survey of lexicology written by eminent linguist M. A. K. Halliday, the book looks at the basic issues in defining and understanding the word as a unit of language. It examines the history of lexicology, the evolution of dictionaries, and recent developments within the field. Colin Yallop takes this survey of lexicology further, exploring words and meaning, etymology, prescription, language as a social phenomenon and translation. In so doing he looks at common misconceptions about language and meaning, and explains the contribution of Saussure and Firth to linguistics.

In the second half of the textbook Wolfgang Teubert and Anna Cermakova take lexicology into the field of corpus linguistics, introducing the key concepts of the field and providing a brief history. This section expands the study of language to ask: How can corpus linguistics advance our study of words and meaning? What are the benefits of studying corpora? How do we best conceptualizemeaning itself?

Providing an accessible introduction to these key concepts in linguistics, and including a glossary and suggestions for further reading, Lexicology and Corpus Linguistics is an essential textbook for undergraduate students.