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Dictionaries

The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language
PE1628. A623 2000 or
via Credo Reference or
via Bartleby
The all-new Fourth Edition of the American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language offers more information about the language, in a more accessible format, than any other dictionary in its class. And its elegant, inviting design makes it the most handsome reference book on the market. Over 10,000 new words and senses. From slang and popular culture to the latest medical, high-tech, and scientific terms, the Fourth Edition's vocabulary has been thoroughly updated to reflect constantly changing language.

Chamber's 21st Century Dictionary
via Credo Reference
Chambers 21st Century Dictionary is the essential guide to English as it is written and spoken now. It contains hundreds of words that have come into the language over the past two to three years, to ensure that it is the most up-to-date dictionary available. All Chambers dictionaries are supported by the British National Corpus©, a 100-million-word database of written and spoken English that provides real evidence of how English is used.

Collin's English Dictionary
via Credo Reference
The 21st Century Edition of the Collins English Dictionary provides the most comprehensive, wide-ranging, and up-to-date coverage of today's English, including thousands of essential encyclopedic facts. It shows language in a way that makes it clear and relevant to today's users. Includes over 18,500 encyclopedic entries with modern meanings first. World English is extensively covered, including full etymologies, which cite the century of the first known occurrence of the word in English.

Concise Oxford English Dictionary
via Oxford Reference Online
Based on the authority of the Oxford English Corpus and the ongoing research of Oxford Dictionaries, the eleventh edition of the Concise Oxford English Dictionary offers rich vocabulary coverage, with full treatment of World English, rare, historical, and archaic terms, as well as scientific and technical vocabulary. This revised edition includes hundreds of new and up-to-date words, such as sudoku, agroterrorism, and bird flu, with a special focus on words and phrases used in business English (e.g. helicopter view, knowledge economy, and vulture fund). There are notes on grammar, punctuation, and usage.

Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary
 Ref PE1628 .M36 2003 or 
via Credo Reference or
via Britannica Online
Fully revised print content features more than 225,000 clear and precise definitions and more than 10,000 new words and meanings. Over 40,000 usage examples, more than any other desk dictionary, provide expert guidance to help solve problems of confused and disputed usage. More than 7,500 phrases and idioms help clarify distinct characteristics of our evolving language.

Oxford American Dictionary of Current English
via Oxford Reference Online

Oxford Dictionary of English
via Oxford Reference Online
Contains 355,000 words, phrases, and definitions. The Oxford Dictionary of English (2nd edition revised) is the foremost single-volume dictionary of the English language. It is at the forefront of language research, focusing on English as it is used today, and has a unique defining style, with the modern meanings of each word always placed first.

The New Oxford American Dictionary
PE1628 .N429 2001 or
via Oxford Reference Online

Oxford English Dictionary
 PE1625 .O87 1989
The Oxford English Dictionary, the world's leading authority on the history and development of the English language since 1150, also available online.
Contains the complete text of the OED's twenty-volume Second Edition and three-volume Additions Series. Online version adds at least 1,000 new and revised entries each quarter. Dates Coverage: 1150 - present.

Penquin English Dictionary
via Credo Reference
This new dictionary perfectly embodies Penguin's worldwide reputation for authority and accessibility. Bringing together the skills of Britain's foremost lexicographers and the insights of pre-eminent specialists, it offers unparalleled in-depth coverage of every aspect of the language. Clear, detailed definitions, with particular emphasis on difficult concepts and meanings.  Includes not only standard English, but also scientific and technical vocabulary, specialist terms, slang, and the English of earlier periods.  Examples drawn from the works of major writers, from Shakespeare to Jane Austen to P. G. Wodehouse to Salman Rushdie

Random House Unabridged Dictionary
PE1625 .R3 2005    

Random House Webster's College Dictionary
PE1628 .R28 1996

Random House Webster's Dictionary of American English
PE1628 .R2943 1997

Webster's New World Dictionary of American English
PE1628 .W5633 1994

Webster's Third New International Dictionary of the English Language, Unabridged
PE1625 .W36 1993

Thesauri

Bloomsbury Thesaurus
via Credo Reference
The Bloomsbury Thesaurus provides a complete guide to the English language. Full of synonyms, alternatives, a fascinating network of cross-references, this edition includes the most recent terms and expressions - from Britpop to bit map - reflecting both technical and day-to-day aspects of Modern English. It is designed to appeal to both established word-reference enthusiasts and younger users who are just beginning to explore the language. Includes more than 13,000 key entries.

Oxford American Thesaurus of Current English
via Oxford Reference Online
This thesaurus is based on state-of-the-art research conducted by Oxford's U.S. dictionary staff using a vast database of some 200 million words. It has more than 15,000 main entries keyed to over 350,000 synonyms, with accompanying example sentences and phrases. Key entries are also supplemented by antonym lists. With clear, expert advice on grammar, usage, and pronunciation, this up-to-date thesaurus is the first place to look when you want just the right word.

Oxford Paperback Thesaurus
via Oxford Reference Online
Containing 300,000 alternative and opposite words, 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 the third edition includes even more real examples of usage to help users identify the right sense. There is clear labelling of informal, dialect, literary, and technical words.

Rogets II: The New Thesaurus
via Credo Reference
All synonym entries appear in one alphabetical list, as in a dictionary. At every entry a complete list of synonyms gives you all the exact synonyms of a word in one place. Every synonym is defined so that you can find the precise meaning you want.

Roget's International Thesaurus, 1st Edition (1922)
via Bartleby
Peter Roget’s classic structure coupled with Mawson’s modernization becomes even more user-friendly on Bartleby.com with 85,000 hyperlinked cross-references—thus fulfilling their goal of “each word being related to its neighbors and each part to the whole.” Additionally, over 2,900 proverbs and quotations from classic and modern authors illustrate the 1,000-plus entries.

Encyclopedias

Academic American Encyclopedia
AE5 .A23 1993

The Cambridge Encyclopedia
AG5 .C26 1997

The Columbia Encyclopedia
AG5 .C725 2000 or
via Credo Reference or
via Bartleby
Containing nearly 51,000 entries (marshalling six and one-half million words on a vast range of topics), and with more than 80,000 hypertext cross-references, the current Sixth Edition is among the most complete and up-to-date encyclopedias ever produced.

Crystal Reference Encyclopedia
via Credo Reference
The Encyclopedia contains many thousands of entries, ranging from absolute zero to zorilla, and over 90,000 cross-references. With an unparalleled level of accuracy and concision, the Crystal Reference Encyclopedia ensures that the essential facts are always at your fingertips.

Encyclopedia Americana
AE5 .E333 2005

Encyclopedia Britannica
EB Online includes the complete encyclopedia, as well as Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary and the Britannica Book of the Year.  You can also use EB Online to search an Internet directory that includes more than 300,000 links to Web sites selected, rated, and reviewed by Britannica editors.  Through this service, you can find more than 118,000 articles, updated and revised by EB editors and contributors; over 14,000 illustrations, including photographs, drawings, maps, and flags; and more than 215,000 entries, including definitions, pronunciation guides and word histories from Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary.

The New Encyclopædia Britannica
AE5 .E363 2002

Encyclopedia of Philosophy
REP Online is the online version of the Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Originally published in print in June 1998, the online versions is updated every January, April, July and October. REP Online features over 2000 original articles from over 1300 leading international experts across the discipline of philosophy. The articles cover an unparalleled breadth of subject matter, including Anglo-American, ethical and political, cross-cultural, interdisciplinary, continental and contemporary philosophy. With a summary providing a rapid orientation at the beginning of every in-depth article, the Encyclopedia is specially designed to meet the needs of all levels of users.

MacMillan Encyclopedia
via Credo Reference
Over 26,000 entries cover the world spectrum of human knowledge, including science and technology, countries of the world, space, natural history, medicine, politics, sport, people, literature, art and history.

Philip's Encyclopedia
via Credo Reference
13,000 fully cross-referenced entries cover science and technology, the arts, history, geography, current affairs, religion, sports, and popular culture, with 1500 colour illustrations.

Wikipedia
Since its creation in 2001, Wikipedia has rapidly grown into the largest reference Web site on the Internet. The content of Wikipedia is free, and is written collaboratively by people from all around the world. This Web site is a wiki, which means that anyone with access to an Internet-connected computer can edit, correct, or improve information throughout the encyclopedia, simply by clicking the edit this page link (with a few minor exceptions, such as protected articles and the main page).

World Encyclopedia
via Credo Reference
With over 13,000 entries, this encyclopedia features concise entries providing essential information on a range of subjects, including world affairs, science and technology, the arts, modern and ancient history, religion, sports, and popular culture.

Almanacs

New York Public Library Desk Reference
AG6 .N49 2002

Old Farmer's Almanac
AY81.F3 O6  or
Online

Pears cyclopaedia
AY756 .P4
a one volume encyclopaedia published in the United Kingdom. Each edition features an atlas, a gazetteer, a list of prominent people (past and present), a miniature encyclopaedia of general information, and a chronological list of events. In addition, each edition features a collection of around a dozen or more other sections about specialist subjects such as cookery, classical mythology, gardening, etc. The selection of these is rotated from year to year.

The Time Almanac
AY64 .I552 or
via Infoplease.com

World Almanac and Book of Facts
AY67 .N5 W7 or
via Academic Search Complete

Whitaker's Almanac
AY754 .W5 or
Online
Published in the UK, includes a univers of information--from detailed information on the UK monarchy, government departments, health and education systems to extensive and authoritative data on every country in the world.

Online Reference Collections

Credo Reference
Credo Reference is a giant online reference library that provides you with access to a selection of reference books from a total of 150. Credo Reference includes encyclopedias, dictionaries, thesauri and books of quotations, not to mention a range of subject-specific titles covering everything from art to accountancy and literature to law.

Gale Virtual Reference Shelf
Gale Virtual Reference Library is a database of encyclopedias and specialized reference sources for multidisciplinary research. These reference materials once were accessible only in the library, but now you can access them online from the library or remotely 24/7.

General Reference Center
A general interest database that integrates a variety of sources in one easy-to-use interface. It includes articles from magazines, reference books, and newspapers, many with full-text and images. It contains data on latest current events, popular culture, the arts and sciences, sports, hobbies, and more.  

Oxford Reference Online
Oxford Reference Online contains over 100 dictionary, language reference, and subject reference works published by Oxford University Press. It is a fully-indexed, cross-searchable database of these books, giving subscribers unprecedented access to a comprehensive information resource.

 

Page updated: January 21, 2007

 

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