Discussed in this essay:

The Dictionary of American Regional English, Volume V: Sl–Z, edited by Joan Houston Hall. Harvard University Press. 1,296 pages. $85. hup.harvard.edu.

The Life of Slang, by Julie Coleman. Oxford University Press. 352 pages. $27.95. oup.com.

The Story of Ain’t: America, Its Language, and the Most Controversial Dictionary Ever Published, by David Skinner. HarperCollins. 368 pages. $26.99. harpercollins.com.

The word lint comes from the word linen, which in turn derives from Old English l?n, meaning “flax.” Linen is spun flax; the byproduct of the spinning process (often, apparently, used for kindling) is the lint. Somehow lint…