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Library Database Trials

Try out these new library databases, available for a limited time only.

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Discipline-specific dictionaries, such as a dictionary of literary terms or dictionary of concepts used in economics, are shelved with other reference books for that discipline.


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You may ask a question and chat with a librarian at the Research Help Desk whenever the Research Help Desk is open.

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Dictionaries and Thesauri

English Dictionaries
French Language and French-English Dictionaries
Foreign Language Dictionaries
Specialized Dictionaries
Thesauri

English Dictionaries

Oxford English Dictionary (OED)
Access OED from: On-campus | Off-campus
The OED is the most comprehensive dictionary of the English language.  It traces the development of the language from 1150 AD to the present, with usage examples from many sources. Includes the full text of the 20-volume 2nd edition, the 3-volume Additions Series, and is updated quarterly with revisions and new terms.

Note: Off-campus access to OED is restricted to authorized Mount Allison users.

Dictionary.com
A multi-source dictionary includes Random House, Webster's, American Heritage Dictionary, etc.

Merriam-Webster OnLine
Dictionary and thesaurus available.

OneLook Dictionaries, the faster finder
Searches over a hundred general and subject-specific dictionaries.

The Wordsmyth English Dictionary
Includes audio pronunciations.

French Language and French-English Dictionaries

Grand Robert & Collins French-English, English-French Dictionary 
Electronic version available on campus workstations: Click Start, then "All Programs". Note: Please log out when done as the number of simultaneous users allowed is limited. 

Le Petit Robert / Le Nouveau Petit Robert
An abbreviated version of the Grand Robert, but more frequently updated.
- 2013 version available online: on campus access | off campus access
- 2008 online version available on campus workstations: Click Start, then “All Programs.” Note: Please log out when done as the number of simultaneous users allowed is limited. 

See also: Mount Allison University Libraries' Subject Guides for French Language and Literature for lists of additional French and French-English dictionaries available in print and onilne.

Foreign Language Dictionaries

AllDictionaries.com
Links to over 500 language dictionaries and about 400 subject-specific dictionaries.

IATE (Inter-Active Terminology for Europe)
A European, multilingual terminology database, mainly for official and technical terms.

LinguistList Dictionaries
A large collection of mono-, bi- and multilingual dictionaries and dictionary meta sites. It can be browsed by language, linguistic subfield and language family.

LOGOS Multilingual Dictionary
Search by word to get equivalents in over 30 languages with examples of usage from classical works of literature.

Oxford Language Dictionaries Online (OLDO)
Oxford Language Dictionaries Online provides access to Oxford's bilingual language dictionaries including Chinese, French, German, Italian, Russian, and Spanish, with additional study materials. (Off-campus)

Verbix
A tool for conjugating verbs in many languages.

YourDictionary.com
A meta-site pointing to 100's of dictionaries in over 100 languages. Includes some industry-specific glossaries.

See Also: Mount Allison University Libraries' Subject Guides for links to French, German, Spanish, and Japanese language dictionaries.

For online translators, see Internet Search Engines, Online Translation, and Directories

Specialized Dictionaries

Abbreviations.com
A large dictionary of acronyms, abbreviations and initialisms.

Acronym Finder
A searchable database of definitions for more than 750,000 abbreviations, acronyms and initialisms.

American Sign Language Browser
An online ASL dictionary that allows you to see a QuickTime video of each word being signed. By Michigan State University.

Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable
Based on the 1898 ed., defines and gives the origin of "interesting" words & phrases, mythological references, fictitious characters, etc.

A Compendious Anglo-Saxon and English Dictionary
By Joseph Bosworth, published: London: John Russell Smith, 1848.

Middle English Compendium
Combines the Middle English Dictionary, HyperBibliography of Middle English sources used in the dictionary, and the Corpus of Middle English Prose and Verse (146 texts).

OneLook Reverse Dictionary
Enter a concept or definition (e.g. urge to travel, or green fruit) to get a list of words related to the concept.

RhymeZone: Rhyming Dictionary

See Also: Mount Allison University Libraries' Subject Guides for links to subject-specific dictionaries.

Thesauri

Roget's Thesaurus (via ARTFL Project)
1911 version, supplemented July 1991.

Roget's International Thesaurus (via bartleby.com)
Based on Roget's International Thesaurus of English Words & Phrases, 1922, with over 2,000 quotations from classic and modern authors. (Select Roget's International Thesaurus at the Search window.)