author
Richard Chenevix Trench
1807–1886
Remembered as an Anglican archbishop, poet, and influential student of language, he helped spark the movement that eventually led to the Oxford English Dictionary. His writing brings together theology, literature, and a deep curiosity about how words change over time.
6 Audiobooks
On the Study of Words
by Richard Chenevix Trench
A select glossary of English words used formerly in senses different from their present
by Richard Chenevix Trench
The Story of Justin Martyr, and Other Poems
by Richard Chenevix Trench
English Past and Present
by Richard Chenevix Trench
Proverbs and Their Lessons Being the Subject of Lectures Delivered to Young Men's Societies at Portsmouth and Elsewhere
by Richard Chenevix Trench
Poems from Eastern Sources: The Steadfast Prince; and Other Poems
by Richard Chenevix Trench
About the author
Born in Dublin in 1807, Richard Chenevix Trench was educated at Trinity College, Cambridge, and became a clergyman in the Church of England. He later served as dean of Westminster and, from 1864, Archbishop of Dublin. Alongside his church career, he wrote poetry, criticism, sermons, and studies of language.
Trench is especially remembered for his work on words. His 1857 paper on the shortcomings of existing English dictionaries helped inspire the project that became the Oxford English Dictionary. He also wrote popular books such as On the Study of Words and English Past and Present, which made the history and meaning of words interesting to general readers as well as scholars.
For readers today, Trench stands out as a Victorian author who moved easily between religion and language. His books often show the same habit of mind: careful reading, moral seriousness, and delight in the hidden history of everyday speech.