The Dictionary of Lost Words

More than a decade later, Ditte writes to Esme’s daughter Megan: Esme has died after being hit by a car at a rally for the Equal Franchise Act. Before her death, Esme wrote a newspaper column called “Lost Words,” where she shared the voices of marginalized people. Ditte also describes celebrating the publication of the OED’s final volume, in which women guests were kept separate and not invited to dinner with the men. Ditte also sends Megan Esme’s treasure box, containing letters, word slips, and Women’s Words. Megan explores Esme’s life and composes a response.

At a lexicographer convention in Australia, a crowd of scholars gathers to celebrate the second edition of the Oxford English Dictionary. A speaker discusses efforts to restore the Indigenous language of the Kaurna people in Australia and encourages attendees to support the preservation of its historical significance. Then Megan, now a university professor, delivers a lecture called “The Dictionary of Lost Words.” She begins with the word “Bondmaid.”