First-Rate Dictionaries and Thesauruses Online!
Where is that dictionary when you really need it? And how can you find the correct spelling of a word when you don’t know the first few letters.
You may know that the word meaning “someone who draws blood for medical purposes” sounds like “flabotomist” but your spell checker indicates that is not the correct spelling. It might be possible to find the word you are looking for in an old-fashioned thesaurus, but finding it could prove to be a time consuming endeavor. Fortunately, there are several online thesauruses and dictionaries that are available free of charge and anyone who ever writes anything can save a tremendous amount of time by learning to use them.
Popular sites include dictionary.reference.com and thesaurus.reference.com but a personal favorite is thefreedictionary.com. In addition to having a standard dictionary/thesaurus, a medical dictionary, a legal dictionary, and other useful tools are included in this site. If a doctor tells you that a “laminectomy” is in order, finding information on the procedure is easy using the medical dictionary. And a realtor’s reference to a “quit claim deed” on a piece of property need not be a source of confusion. The legal dictionary has a simple definition of the term.
Not only do these valuable tools offer the standard information provided by all dictionaries and thesauruses, additionally, they have a small “speaker” icon and when you click on it you will hear the spoken word. This is invaluable if you still have some doubt regarding the correct pronunciation of a word. While most of us know that “carpe diem” is a Latin term meaning seize the pleasure of the moment, many of us would not be certain that our pronunciation of the expression was correct. Other phrases, spoken in languages other than English, are now commonly used in spoken and written English language text. Remember that an individual familiar with musical terms may know how to pronounce “a cappella” but it could prove to be daunting to others.
So take a few minutes to check out these terrific sites. Hard cover dictionaries and thesauruses may soon become obsolete – nothing more than artifacts found in old book collections. And you may never be forced to scour your bookcase in search of a dictionary again because you will always know where it is; it’s online.