Reference Shelf - Dictionaries & Thesauri
Reference ShelfGeneral Dictionaries
- Oxford English Dictionary
- OED is the pre-eminent historical dictionary of the English language. Other Oxford dictionaries and thesauri available also. Available to UT (Knoxville campus) faculty, staff, and students.
- Webster's Third New International Dictionary of the English Language Unabridged.
- A dictionary of the English language containing 450,000 vocabulary entries. Available to UT (Knoxville campus) faculty, staff, and students.
- American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language
- Third edition, 1996, from Bartleby.com. Provides syllabication, pronunciation, parts of speech, definition, etymology, and other forms. Contains "over 350,000 entries and meanings. Word definitions are further enhanced by over 34,000 examples of use, more than 500 usage notes and a newly revised appendix of Indo-European roots."
- Cambridge Dictionaries Online
- Online searching (singly but not simultaneously) of Cambridge International Dictionary of English, Cambridge Dictionary of American English, Cambridge International Dictionary of Idioms, and Cambridge International Dictionary of Phrasal Verbs. Includes pronunciation, parts of speech, and definition.
- Dictionary.com
- Pronunciation, definition, usage, idioms, etc., but also gives links to other dictionary entries, including translations from bilingual dictionaries. Thesaurus included.
- Encarta World English Dictionary
- Free online version of Encarta. Provides pronunciation (including audio file examples of some words), parts of speech, definition, and etymology.
- Hypertext Webster Gateway
- Heavily hypertextual version of Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913). Provides etymology, pronunciation, and definitions.
- iTools
- Dictionary aggregator. Includes dictionaries, thesauri, language translators, quotations, anagrams, acronyms and more.
- Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary
- Provides pronunciation, parts of speech, etymology, and definitions. Includes thesaurus.
- Newbury House Online Dictionary
- Over 40,000 entries that contain pronunciation, parts of speech, definition, and examples. Plans are to include photographs of relevant objects--limited selection currently available.
- OneLook Dictionaries
- Dictionary aggregator. Search in 252 dictionaries on the web or choose from Special Subject Dictionaries.
- Oxford Reference Online
- Access to over 100 dictionaries and handbooks. Search all reference works simultaneously or browse individual titles. Available to UT (Knoxville campus) faculty, staff, and students.
- Wordsmyth: The Educational Dictionary-Thesaurus
- Includes syllabication, pronunciation, definitions, synonyms, inflections, and parts of speech. "(WEDT) is the premier online American English dictionary with an integrated thesaurus. WEDT contains 50,000 headwords, and very precisely defined and hyperlinked synonyms."
- yourDictionary.com (A Web of On-line Dictionaries)
- Dictionary aggregator. More than 400 dictionaries in English and over 130 different languages.
- Dictionary directories:
- Internet Public Library
- Yahoo
Specialized Dictionaries
- Acronym Finder
- Search among over 153,000 acronyms or search by "reverse" keywords.
- American Sign Language Browser
- Browse for words and then view a demonstration of the sign.
- Law.com Dictionary
- Browse or search legal terms. Reverse search function also available.
- Lexical FreeNet
- Search for relationships between words. "This program allows you to search for relationships between words, concepts, and people. It is a combination thesaurus, rhyming dictionary, pun generator, and concept navigator."
- RhymeZone
- Find rhymes, synomyms, antonyms, homophones, and related words.
- Word Spy
- A collection of over 1000 neologisms. Browse or search using boolean logic. "This Web site and its associated mailing list are devoted to recently coined words, existing words that have enjoyed a recent renaissance, and older words that are now being used in new ways."
- WorldWideWeb Acronym and Abbreviation Server
- Search by acronym or definition. Submit an acronym.
- Specialized dictionary directories:
- Yahoo slang dictionaries
Thesauri & Synonyms
- Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Thesaurus
- Includes short definition, synomyms, antonyms, related words and contrasted words.
- Roget's Thesaurus
- 1911 edition. Search the headwords or full text. From the ARTFL Project.
- Roget's II: The New Thesaurus
- 3rd. edition from Bartleby.com. Browse alphabetically and by category, or search the full text. "Contains 35,000 synonyms, in an easy-to-use format that eschews the traditionally classified or category-indexed thesaurus of old."
- Thesaurus.com
- Alphabetical and categorical index. Dictionary also included. From Lexico LLC.
Word Trivia
- Internet Anagram Server
- Find new words and phrases from rearranged letters.
- Web of Linguistic Fun
- Word history, puzzles, and other trivia.
- Word Oddities and Trivia.
- Find those much sought after words ending in -gry and other language tidbits.
Contents:
General
Dictionaries
Specialized Dictionaries
Thesauri & Synonyms
Word Trivia
Related:
Reference Shelf
Subject Guides
Reference Department
Page Maintained by:
Lana S. Dixon
Health Sciences
Reference Librarian
ldixon@utk.edu
974-4700