What was J.R.R. Tolkien’s first Oxford English Dictionary assignment after World War I?

J.R.R. Tolkien’s first Oxford English Dictionary assignment after World War I covered the word range from “waggle” to “warlock.”

Tolkien joined the staff of the Oxford English Dictionary in 1919, after serving in the British Army during World War I. He worked as an assistant lexicographer, helping trace word histories, meanings, forms, and uses through historical evidence.

The assignment is notable because Tolkien later became famous for constructing fictional languages, but dictionary work gave him detailed practical experience with English word origins and historical change. His philological training was directly relevant to the job.

The exact range is sometimes reported loosely as “W to warlock,” which can obscure the more specific assignment. Tolkien left the dictionary project in 1920 to take an academic post at the University of Leeds.