Reviews (2)

My favorite dictionary
The first edition of this dictionary was given to me by my grandmother.I find it the most readable and comprehensive, for its size, of any dictionary I have used.I have bought the subsequent editions including the fourth both for my children and myself, though the first is still my bedside reference.

Excellent for a new immigrant ora young child
5 Stars for new immigrants and young children, one star for the rest of us.It should be defined as a two or more word phrase dictionary.Examples: correspondence course, dog in the manger, dog and pony show, French telephone, grow light, information science.Great illustrations and pictures, a lot of fluff, of course the foul mouthed person will be able to find the definitions to their slang words in accurate detail.However Yiddish slang and those of other cultures were left out. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Dictionaries    2. Dictionaries - General    3. English Language Dictionaries    4. English language    5. Reference    6. Reference / Dictionaries   

Reviews (8)

useful tool of reference but...
I think the title should be changed to 'Dictionary of Synonyms and Antonyms'. The word thesaurus used here is unsuitable given that the Theseus of Greek myths was neither a great writer, philologist, lexographer or anything else related to dictionaries. This name is not used for such dictionaries in other western european languages. so why use it in English?

you said "thesaurus" haha!
dude i am totally feeling this thegasaurus. not to get all neolithic on you guys or anything, but this thegasaurus really rocks, extinct or not extinct! really though, if this thegasaurus was water, man would I drink it! if it was a chick, i'd be all like, "hey, how's it going?" if it was a show that ran in real time starring keiffer sutherland, i would so tape it and watch it when i got home. that's what thegasauruses are all about man. taping. and taping means saving. please save the thegasauruses!!!! let's not let them die out again!! honestly, if the cavemen from the past were more like the geico cavemen in those commercials, they would have totally rocked and spearheaded a campaign to save the thegasauruses! come on people!!! BE CAVEMEN!!!!! ORDER THE ROAST DUCK WITH MANGO SALSA!!!!
new dictionary
We were using a dictionary published in 1955.It is a pleasure to be able to look up so many words that were not in use then.For example"digital" ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Dictionaries & Terminology    2. English language    3. Reference    4. Synonyms and antonyms    5. Thesauri    6. English   

Reviews (7)

Second To None
This dictionary was written in an era in our country when Christian moral values were the norm. Look up such words as marriage, sin, law, faith, and prayer in any modern dictionary and compare the definitions to the ones in "Noah Webster's First Edition Dictionary" and you will see how how much moral values have changed. Loving to to study Scripture and write I have many referance books. I use my "Strongs Concordance" and my "Noah Webster's First Edition Dictionary" more than all the rest of my referance books put together. Even though it isn't cheap, it has been one the best investments I have ever made. And I do mean investment!

A dream come true
This dictionary is everything you could ever wish, and yes, it is the very first.These very many and every original, clear Old English definitions is not that of today's complex excess baggage terms defined, but it even contains the sources of the many instances used.As a bible reader, I found and understood almost everything I looked for in my KJV bible, however the size is a bit bulky, but I got what I paid. 'One Look Search Dictionary' (http://www.onelook.com) has it free online, but it seems less complete.This book did not disappoint me.

A fund of wisdom, knowledge, and information.
NOAH WEBSTER'S FIRST EDITION OF AN AMERICAN DICTIONARY OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE.San Francisco: Foundation for American Christian Education, Twelfth Printing, 2000.ISBN 0-912498-03-XRead more

Subjects:  1. Dictionaries    2. English language    3. Reference   

Subjects:  1. Dictionaries - General    2. English Language Dictionaries    3. Reference    4. Reference / Dictionaries   

Reviews (7)

The Best Dictionary Because It's Practical
I think this dictionary is superb because generally there are no derivatives in the definitions of the words looked up.Most dictionaries are like this: FOXY -- someone or something that has the characteristics of a FOX.If someone is trying to discover the definition of the word "foxy," then most likely the person is not going to understand the word "fox," so what good is the dictionary's definition to that person?Longman's Dictionary might have something like this: FOX -- someone or something who or that is SLY.I have tutored/taught English at a college for nearly thirty years, and although we recommend Longman's Dictionary mostly for ESL students, I also recommend it for native speakers of the English language for the reason stated above.

Excellent Resource
This is a great English-English dictionary for intermediate to advanced students. The definitions are clear and easy to understand and are often offered by way of example--e.g., bereaved--if someone is bereaved, someone he or she loves has died. The illustrations are really nice, the layout clear. I strongly advise my students to use this as soon they can handle it--at higher levels I tell them they must break themselves of the habit of translating. I'm also a big fan of the Collins Co-build, which is more complete, but it's hard to get in the U.S., and the alternate British/American definitions could be confusing to all but the most advanced students. This is a winner. Given the bad reviews of the CD I haven't tried it yet, but this book stands on its own just fine.

5 stars for this book! Period.
This dictionary is better than any other American dictionary, CD does have problems but it'd be unfair not to reward it 5 stars for the content of the book. The only difference between this one and first edition is that this one comes with a CD - a bonus to me. (The picture of its first edition on Amazon.com shows the book with a CD, that picture i think belongs to this one as the title suggest). Book uses 2000 most common words of english to define meanings. The book is 5 star for sure, but the CD is irritating. The CD has to be in the drive all the times in order to run the rather cheaply programmed software. It takes ages to load to look up a single word no matter what super computer you've got while the noise from your computer will make you want to fasten your seat belt.Read more

Subjects:  1. Dictionaries - General    2. Reference   

Reviews (2)

Students can use it early on
This dictionary is recommended in my ESL department, and I have intermediate students who learn to use it to the exclusion of bilingual dictionaries. The thesaurus feature is great, and there's lots of helpful grammar material in the back. I also like Longman--either one is excellent, and much better than standard English dictionaries for ESL students

Best Dictionary
I teach English as a Second Language, intermediate level.This is the best dictionary I have ever seen.The explanations are clear, in simple language, the thesaurus is great, and the sample sentences are easy to understand.Too often, in an all-English dictionary, the meaning of the word is in such complicated language that it is impossible to understand, even for native-born English speakers.I have weaned my students off their bilingual dictionaries and onto this dictionary.It has helped them to write better and their vocabulary has improved greatly.Thanks you for this great addition to my library. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Dictionaries    2. Dictionaries - General    3. Reference    4. American English    5. ELT dictionaries & reference   

Editorial Review

The 1998 10th edition of Read more

Reviews (82)

Merriam Webster Review
This is a very complete dictionary. The word derivations are quite good. Also more definitions than the competition (American Heritage and Collins Co Built).
Great feature for Word
This is a great program for use in MS Word. Highlight any word and click the iconand it looks if up for you. Lots of other features too: rhyming words, spelling help,thesaurus, word games, etc.
its a great product
I really enjoy the product. It interfaced with my word processor which made its use very easy. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Dictionaries    2. Dictionaries & Terminology    3. Dictionaries - General    4. English Language Dictionaries    5. English language    6. Reference    7. English   

Reviews (1)

Longman Basic Dictionary of American English
It's a great tool for who are learning american english ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Children's 9-12 - Reference    2. Children's Books/Ages 9-12 Nonfiction    3. Dictionaries    4. English language    5. Reference - Dictionaries    6. Textbooks for foreign speakers    7. United States    8. ELT dictionaries & reference   

Reviews (1)

A compeling tale that takes the reader from A to zymurgy.
This book holds within its pages all the ecstasy of the human condition as well as its depths of despair.The sum total of the English language is captured andbrought to the light of examination. We see ourselves,wesee others, we see all of humanity in black and white.Compelling,captivating and best of all not one single spellingmistake. A must readfor generations. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Americanisms    2. Dictionaries    3. English language    4. Reference    5. Encyclopaedias & Reference Works   

Editorial Review

While the text edition of this dictionary has collected kudos from numerous newspapers throughout its previous editions, many users may find that the CD-Rom replaces the book as a handy quick-reference instrument. The disk loads in a matter of minutes, and offers a linked thesaurus with the dictionary--you can choose one or both reference tools, and you can customize both with your particular notes. Kids who are told to "look it up" when they ask mom how to spell a word will love the Misspeller's Dictionary included on the disk, which can easily translate spellings like "wierd" and "anoy". Using the thesaurus while using the dictionary allows you to click easily between words, using the former to extend your vocabulary while checking the specific definitions in the latter to ensure precise usage.Read more

Reviews (29)

Good price
This is an excellent deal on this dictionary. I was very excited to get something I needed for work at such a reasonable price.

This is a good dictionary
Here is my recent encounter with the dictionary:
Most trusted dictionary for your own reference?
This is my most trusted dictionary for my own reference and studies. I bought a copy for work and home.
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Subjects:  1. Dictionaries    2. Dictionaries - General    3. English Language Dictionaries    4. English language    5. Reference    6. English    7. Reference / Dictionaries   

Reviews (1)

Just a note for CD
If you can't install the CD in XP SP2, there's a fix at http://www.macmillandictionary.com/aboutcdfaq.htm#XP2
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Subjects:  1. Dictionaries    2. Dictionaries - General    3. English language    4. Idioms    5. Reference    6. United States    7. Reference / Dictionaries   

Reviews (2)

Best dictionary for those who aren't great at English
I teach English at a large Los Angeles-area high school.Most of the students entering my class are reading below grade level.I've bought several of these dictionaries over the past couple of years for students to use for vocabulary assignments and/or general reference.They have been, far and away, the most popular (and therefore, most used) of the dictionaries in the classroom.Students love the convenient size and easily understood definitions.Longman does an excellent job of making entries make sense.For instance, there are no lame defintions such as: "mysterious" means "full of mystery".Definitions can be a bit wordy, but they are written in basic English and students tend to understand them more readily than with other dictionaries.For comparison, the first entry for "mysterious" reads "mysterious events, behavior, or situations are difficult to explain or understand".Another feature which I like and no one has mentioned is the vinyl cover: durable, longer lasting than paperback covers of most inexpensive student dictionaries.
The best handy or small size dictionary for Learners
I have three different pocket-size dictionarieswritten for Learner's of English as a second language. Oxford, Webster and Longman. This one has the easiest to understand explanation of the words in comparison with otherones. I have two of this edition. I keep one in my office and one at home. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Dictionaries - General    2. General    3. Reference    4. American English    5. Dialectology    6. ELT dictionaries & reference   

Reviews (1)

Brillant Yet Flawed
I just bought this book today and was absolutley delighted to see such an up-to-date reference book on American usage.I have been waiting for a comphrensive yet readable book on this subject, and Mr. Davidson's book fills the bill fairly well.The entries are alphabetically arranged, with very entertaining and informative prescriptions on what's right and incorrect.On the more controversial entries he even suggests a "risk-free" alternative to keep the prospective writer/editor out of possible hot water.A nice touch!Most aspects of usage and style are covered.From the usual collection of confusing and misspelled words, to excellent discussions about fused gerunds, redundant phrases, and other matters likely to trip up people who want to write clearly and correctly for their readers.The excellent bibliography is exhasutive and lists all the books that have been published on this topic since the early 90s (and earlier!).
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Subjects:  1. Dictionaries    2. Dictionaries - Synonyms/Antonyms    3. English Grammar    4. English language    5. Grammar    6. Reference    7. Social History    8. United States    9. Usage    10. Writing Skills    11. English    12. Literature: Texts    13. Miscellaneous Items    14. Reference / General   

Reviews (2)

Hongul is fun!
Like the first review says, if you learn the Hongul alphabet(and I assure you it is easy), then you can read the language and you can speak in no time. If you want a dictionary that says it all and is concise down to the most difficult words and thoughts, then buy this dictionary. When you have been in Korea and know what the culture is like and try like hell to fit in by using the language, you can't go wrong with this dictionary. Jin-chao!

EVERYTHING I EXPECTED!
THIS IS THE BEST KOREAN DICTIONARY I'VE SEEN.IT'S WELL WORTH WHAT I PAID FOR IT.IT LISTS LOTS OF DEFINITIONS AND IS VERY THOROUGH.I ESPECIALLY LIKE IT BECAUSE OF ITS EXPLANATIONS AND EXAMPLES OF HOW TO USE THE WORD IN A SENTENCE.BY THE WAY, THERE ARE TWO VOLUMES: ENGLISH-KOREAN AND KOREAN-ENGLISH, BOTH AROUND 3,000 PAGES.YOU CAN SEE HOW THOROUGH THEY ARE.I HAVE THE ENGLISH-KOREAN ONE AND PLAN TO BUY THE OTHER ONE SOON.ANOTHER THING I LIKE IS THAT THERE ARE NO ROMANIZATIONS TO MESS WITH.IF YOU LEARN THE HANKUL ALPHABET, LEARNING TO READ IT IS EASY.GREAT DICTIONARY! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Korean    2. Language   

Editorial Review

The third edition of the Read more

Reviews (24)

A Heritage Far Earlier Than American
In a land of great dictionaries, this one stands out as being the one that most expresses what it really means to be American. This is the people's dictionary. Two of its features are its accessibility and its comprehensiveness. You can use this dictionary absolutely for free on the Internet; however, for convenience you might want the hard copy. A 1 3/4 margin on every page is reserved for the numerous miniature pictures illustrating the entries. The text is designed for readability. However, you must not think scholarship is in deficit. Oh no. It was great day for us when Harvard University's Calvert Watkins agreed to do the appendix on Indo-european roots, which keys us in to a language tradition thousands of years old. Nothing else like it is readily available. If you look at the panel of other experts, you will readily see that this dictionary truly is the language reference of our united people. No loving care for our intellectual well-being is stinted by minds that came from many heritages.

Top of the line dictionary
The dictionary is well published with easy access.The definitions are concise explainations. I recommend this dictionary to anyone who is interested in obtaining a great dictionary that could be rated with that of a Cadillac of dictionaries. I am proud to have it on my book shelf!

4th edition has color, and up to date words
The American Heritage is the best distionary for Americans. It has clear and concise definitions plus fantastic etymologies. There are two other dictionaries that I use: The OED and Webster's 2nd International Unabridged (old), but the AHD is first, always! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Dictionaries    2. Dictionaries - General    3. English language    4. Reference   

Reviews (1)

Dictionary of American Regional English by Cassidy et al.
This dictionary contains approximately 11,000 entries. It is
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Subjects:  1. Americanisms    2. Dialects    3. Dictionaries    4. Dictionaries (Multi-Subject)    5. Dictionaries - General    6. English language    7. General    8. Glossaries, vocabularies, etc    9. Provincialisms    10. Reference    11. United States    12. American English    13. Dialectology    14. Reference / Dictionaries    15. USA   

Subjects:  1. Calendar    2. Calendars & Diaries    3. Calendars - Reference    4. Dictionaries - General    5. Non-Classifiable    6. Language Arts & Disciplines / Reference   

Reviews (5)

A useful old dictionary, but be careful with it
Some of the other reviews on this page point out that certain Chinese-Chinese dictionaries are better than Mathews. But that's hardly a fair criticism; you have to compare it to other Chinese-English dictionaries, and those that take the classical language into account are hard to come by. (One work that is rapidly gaining in popularity is the Taiwanese Far East Chinese-English dictionary, which is expanded from an older dictionary compiled by Liang Shih-ch'iu.) Old can be Good
What, is this book still around?This was required classroom material for anybody who studied Chinese prior to 1980.Since then, other material has come out that sometimes has more characters (which is not an accurate indicator of total entries), frequently has newer coinages (but leaves older ones out), usually is smaller (admittedly, Matthews weighs a ton) but probably nothing that is all-around more useful than old Matthews.If you are a serious student of Chinese you should acquire it.

Great for starters, but Chinese sources better down the road
When I first started studying Classical Chinese, I used this book so often that I photocopied the character indexes to save time.However, I haven't opened it too often since those first classes. Read more

Subjects:  1. Chinese language    2. Dictionaries    3. English    4. Ethnic Studies - General    5. General    6. Reference    7. Social Science    8. Sociology    9. Social Science / Ethnic Studies   

Subjects:  1. Audio Adult: Language    2. Dictionaries - General    3. English as a Second Language    4. English language    5. Oriental    6. Pronunciation by foreign speak    7. Pronunciation by foreign speakers    8. Spoken English    9. Textbooks for foreign speakers    10. Unabridged Audio - Misc.Nonfiction    11. United States    12. Non-Classifiable   

Reviews (4)

This a great step-by-step approach to pronunciation
I am a workplace English instructor and find Targeting Pronunciation and the audiocassette package of to be very useful in business settings as well as the classroom as a tool for teaching more effective presentation skills. Caution!
This is a really good book, but be careful. Don't buy the $33 version of this book (ISBN 0-395-90331-9).It ONLY includes the Book.Buy the $42 version of this book (ISBN 0-395-94540-2).That is the Package Edition, and includes both the Book and the Audiocassettes.

Sue Miller is specifc and detailed
We've been working on a lot of material on voice and accent for Indian Call Centers dealing with the American market.Read more

Subjects:  1. Dictionaries - General    2. English as a Second Language    3. English language    4. Language    5. Language Arts & Disciplines    6. Listening    7. Pronunciation    8. Reference    9. Speech    10. Textbooks for foreign speakers    11. United States    12. American English    13. ELT: speaking / pronunciation skills