English Dictionary
Definition of “dictionaries”
Word Frequency
dictionary (ˈdɪkʃənərɪ
; -ʃənrɪ)
Definitions
noun
(plural) -aries-
- a reference resource, in printed or electronic form, that consists of an alphabetical list of words with their meanings and parts of speech, and often a guide to accepted pronunciation and syllabification, irregular inflections of words, derived words of different parts of speech, and etymologies
- a similar reference work giving equivalent words in two or more languages. Such dictionaries
often consist of two or more parts, in each of which the alphabetical list is given
in a different language ⇒
a German-English dictionary
- (as modifier) ⇒
a dictionary definition
See also glossary, lexicon, thesaurus
- a reference publication listing words or terms of a particular subject or activity,
giving information about their meanings and other attributes ⇒
a dictionary of gardening
- a collection of information or examples with the entries alphabetically arranged ⇒
a dictionary of quotations
Word Origin
C16: from Medieval Latin dictiōnārium collection of words, from Late Latin dictiō word; see dictionQuotations including 'dictionaries'
"Dictionaries are like watches; the worst is better than none, and the best cannot be expected to go quite true"
"When I feel inclined to read poetry I take down my Dictionary. The poetry of words is quite as beautiful as that of sentences. The author may arrange the gems effectively, but their shape and lustre have been given by the attrition of the ages"
"To make dictionaries is dull work"
"dictionary: a malevolent literary device for cramping the growth of a language and making it hard and inelastic. This dictionary, however, is a most useful work"
Example Sentences Including 'dictionaries'
A bit cramped but maybe that's because every inch of space is crammed with dictionaries.CASCADES - THE DAY OF THE DEAD (2001)
And if the dictionaries don't list them, this doesn't necessarily mean that the missing non- words are non-words.Misc (1999)
For the first time, students whose first language is not English or Irish, will be allowed bi-lingual dictionaries.Sun, News of the World (2004)
I used to read them on wet days. Papa would send to England and Germany for them and she would sit there translating with dictionaries.SEA MUSIC (2003)
Only in the 1880s did it enter literary use; dictionaries only from 1909. Thence Merton's own serendipitous encounter.New Scientist (2004)
Something must've disturbed them, or it wasn't worth the risk now they were considering cutlery and Swahili--English dictionaries.WHITE LIES (2003)
This was Synthetic Scots, a language nobody spoke, fashioned from literary sources, learned articles and dictionaries.WHEN SCOTLAND RULED THE WORLD: The Story of the Golden Age of Genius, Creativity and Exploration (2002)
When he is not writing poems, Fraser Sutherland edits dictionaries.Globe and Mail (2003)
Writers such as Irvine Welsh and James Ellroy almost need their own dictionaries.Times, Sunday Times (2002)
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