This dictionary provides succinct and often witty explanations of over one thousand potentially troublesome terms encountered in the study of literature, from 'absurd' to 'zeugma', from the ancient 'dithyramb' to the contemporary 'dub poetry', from the popular 'bodiceripper' to the aristocratic 'masque'. Adjectival forms and other derived words are displayed, and simple pronunciation guides are given for over two hundred difficult terms, making this thoroughly cross-referenced dictionary the most helpful of its kind for all readers of literature.