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Dictionaries Guide

Dictionaries

Finding Dictionaries Online

UNB Libraries provides access to hundreds on online dictionaries, from language dictionaries to subject-specific titles on a wide range of topics. Check Reference Materials on the library website to search for dictionary titles, or choose from the selection listed below.

Key Resources include several large collections of online reference works. Choose one of these if you're not sure of where to begin, or if you want to search across multiple titles or multiple subject areas.

Additional Resources include a selection of English-language or bilingual dictionaries. To find a subject dictionary, try one of the Key Resources below, or consult "Reference Sources" in a research guide for your subject area.

Key Resources

  • Oxford Reference
    Multi-part database of the online versions of Oxford University Press texts. Each topical division contains the searchable version of the latest edition of published dictionaries and encyclopedias. Additionally, information about Oxford University Press is provided. Online texts will be updated after new editions of the print monographs are published. Covers the humanities and social sciences.
    5 simultaneous users.
  • Oxford English Dictionary (OED Online)
    "This unique and powerful resource offers unprecedented access to the definitive record of the meaning, history and evolution of more than 600,000 words over the last 1,500 years." A complete text of the 2nd. ed. of the Oxford English dictionary with quarterly updates, including revisions not available in any other form.
    5 simultaneous users.
  • Concise Oxford dictionary of English etymology, The
    "Based on The Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, the principal authority on the origin and development of English words, The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Etymology contains a wealth of information about the English language and its history. Find out where the words 'bungalow' and 'assassin' came from, what 'nice' meant in the Middle Ages and much more."
    5 simultaneous users.
  • Oxford dictionary of English grammar, The
    "This accessible and comprehensive dictionary comes to the aid of both the general reader and the student or teacher, offering straightforward and immediate access to 1,000 grammatical terms and their meanings. All the currently accepted terms of grammar are included, as well as older, traditional names, controversial new coinages, and items from the study of other languages. Concise definitions of the wider subject of linguistics, including phonetics and transformational grammar, are accompanied by examples of language in use, and frequent quotations from existing works on grammar."
    5 simultaneous users.

Additional Resources

  • Oxford dictionary of American usage and style, The
    "What is the singular of 'paparazzi'? Is 'graffiti' singular or plural? Should I say 'empathic' or 'empathetic'? What is the correct pronunciation of 'concierge'? In this book of crisp, precise and often witty pronouncements on modern American English, Bryan Garner decisively answers these and hundreds of other questions that bedevil those who care about the language. Garner draws on a host of evidence to support his judgements, citing thousands of examples - good, bad, and ugly - from sources such as The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and Newsweek."
    5 simultaneous users.
  • Oxford essential dictionary of foreign terms in English, The
    "This comprehensive reference includes detailed information on the spelling, history, and usage of thousands of foreign words and phrases used by English speakers. There are words from more than forty languages, including Arabic, Chinese, Dutch, Latin, Portuguese, Spanish, and Yiddish. Terms from cooking, fashion, and music jostle with others from fine arts, history, law, politics, business, and travel in this great reference to words from around the globe."
    5 simultaneous users.
  • Oxford paperback thesaurus, The
    "This thesaurus covers nearly one-third of a million alternative and opposite words. The most useful alternative word is given first, with words closest in meaning to the entry word given in capitals. Opposites and related terms are clearly marked, and thousands of example sentences help users select the right word. There is clear labelling of informal, dialect, literary, and technical words."
    5 simultaneous users.
  • Pocket Fowler's modern English usage
    "This Pocket edition is based primarily on Robert W. Burchfield's renowned The New Fowler's Modern English Usage. Robert Allen has taken all the key elements from the best-selling parent work, rewriting entries to present the arguments and recommendations in a more accessible and digestible form, and has added completely new topics such as American English, new words, and gender-neutrality. Clear guidance on grammar, usage, syntax, and style for English is provided."
    5 simultaneous users.
  • New dictionary of eponyms, A
    "This dictionary features the entertaining histories behind hundreds of eponyms, such as bowdlerize (from the censorious Thomas Bowdler), bikini from the atoll, and the Salisbury steak, a dish of hamburger and brown gravy named after James H. Salisbury, an English physician who promoted a diet of ground beef. There are hundreds more - discover to whom we owe the terms hooker, sideburn, zeppelin, the cardigan sweater, pamphlet, robot, and argyle socks."
    5 simultaneous users.
  • Pocket Oxford Italian dictionary (English-Italian), The
    "With examples carefully selected by a large team of native speakers of English and Italian, The Pocket Oxford Italian Dictionary clearly illustrates the full range of meanings and typical contexts of both languages. Offering wide-ranging coverage, this outstanding dictionary offers guidance on key constructions, complementation, and difficult points of grammar. Including complete coverage of contemporary idiomatic Italian and English, both written and spoken, The Pocket Oxford Italian Dictionary covers the vocabulary that all learners really need."
    5 simultaneous users.
  • Pocket Oxford Italian dictionary (Italian-English), The
    "With examples carefully selected by a large team of native speakers of English and Italian, The Pocket Oxford Italian Dictionary clearly illustrates the full range of meanings and typical contexts of both languages. Offering wide-ranging coverage, this outstanding dictionary offers guidance on key constructions, complementation, and difficult points of grammar. Including complete coverage of contemporary idiomatic Italian and English, both written and spoken, The Pocket Oxford Italian Dictionary covers the vocabulary that all learners really need."
    5 simultaneous users.
  • Pocket Oxford Latin dictionary (English-Latin), The
    "This practical dictionary is designed specifically to meet the needs of students in their first years of studying Latin, as well as those with an interest in the Latin language or the classical world."
    5 simultaneous users.
  • Pocket Oxford Latin dictionary (Latin-English), The
    "This practical dictionary is designed specifically to meet the needs of students in their first years of studying Latin, as well as those with an interest in the Latin language or the classical world."
    5 simultaneous users.

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