In the Introduction, the editors describe the motivations and aims underlying the publication of the book against the background of the importance of corpus linguistics in current research and the associated methodological diversification. The didactic orientation of the book is outlined, as is its organization into four major parts and the contribution made by each chapter. Going beyond a summary of the contents, the editors voice some reflections on the state of the art in corpus linguistics and desiderata for future research. Finally, recommendations for further reading are listed and provided with comments.