Oxford English Dictionary (2024)

Oxford English Dictionary (1)

Word stories

Read our collection of word stories detailing the etymology and semantic development of a wide range of words, including ‘dungarees’, ‘codswallop’, and ‘witch’.

Oxford English Dictionary (2)

Word lists

Access our word lists and commentaries on an array of fascinating topics, from film-based coinages to Tex-Mex terms.

Oxford English Dictionary (3)

World Englishes

Explore our World Englishes hub and access our resources on the varieties of English spoken throughout the world by people of diverse cultural backgrounds.

Oxford English Dictionary (4)

History of English

Here you can find a series of commentaries on the History of English, charting the history of the English language from Old English to the present day.

Oxford English Dictionary (2024)

FAQs

How reliable is the Oxford English Dictionary? ›

The Oxford English Dictionary (OED) is widely accepted as the most complete record of the English language ever assembled. Unlike typical language dictionaries, which only define words in terms of their current uses and meanings, the OED is a historical dictionary.

Is The Oxford English Dictionary accurate? ›

The Oxford English Dictionary (OED) is widely regarded as the accepted authority on the English language. It is an unsurpassed guide to the meaning, history, and usage of 500,000 words and phrases past and present, from across the English-speaking world.

What is the meaning of enough in Oxford dictionary? ›

/ɪˈnʌf/ ​used before plural or uncountable nouns to mean 'as many or as much as somebody needs or wants' synonym sufficient.

How long did the Oxford English Dictionary take to complete? ›

It took 70 years to complete, but the Oxford English Dictionary was arguably history's first massively-crowdsourced collation of English knowledge. It's now the early 21st century.

Which is more reliable Merriam-Webster or Oxford Dictionary? ›

However, Merriam-Webster is the largest and most reputable of the U.S. dictionary publishers, regardless of the type of dictionary (general, geographical, biographical, or a thesaurus). Some of the additional reliable American publishers are Oxford University Press, Random House, Macmillan, and American Heritage.

Which dictionary is better than Oxford? ›

While the Oxford English Dictionary gives you the meaning of the word as well as its origin, the Cambridge Dictionary gives a more practical explanation along with an example of how to use the word in a sentence.

Is Cambridge dictionary better than Oxford? ›

The Oxford and Cambridge dictionaries have long been considered as the two most credible and trustworthy for British English. In terms of popularity, the Oxford dictionary is the more popular of the two in the UK and is generally cited as the ultimate authority on the language.

Does America use the Oxford Dictionary? ›

The Second Edition added over 3,000 new words, senses and phrases drawn from the Oxford English Corpus. The New Oxford American Dictionary is the American version of the Oxford Dictionary of English, with substantial editing and uses a diacritical respelling scheme rather than the IPA system.

Which Oxford Dictionary Edition is best? ›

Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary 10th edition builds English vocabulary better than ever before and leads the way to more confident, successful communication in English. The Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary is the world's bestselling advanced level dictionary for learners of English.

What is the difference between Oxford dictionary of English and Oxford Advanced Learner's dictionary? ›

ODE is the flagship native-speaker desk dictionary from Oxford Dictionaries for British English. It has a much longer headword list than OALD and definitions written to a much higher level; also fewer, shorter examples. OALD is what it sounds like, an English dictionary for advanced learners.

What is too enough in English grammar? ›

Too and enough can modify both nouns, adjectives, and adverbs. Too indicates that there is too much of a quality, or too much or too many of some object. Enough means that there is no need for more of a quality or object.

What is the English word for enough? ›

enough means 'as much as necessary'. It can be used with an adjective, an adverb, a verb or a noun.

Is rizz in the dictionary? ›

verb. rizzed; rizzing; rizzes. transitive verb. slang. : to charm or seduce.

Which language has the most words? ›

How Many Words in the Dictionary?
LanguageWords in the Dictionary
English171,476
Russian150,000
Spanish93,000
Chinese85,568
3 more rows

Is the Oxford English Dictionary a scholarly source? ›

It traces the historical development of the English language, providing a comprehensive resource to scholars and academic researchers, as well as describing usage in its many variations throughout the world.

Is Oxford Reference a reliable source? ›

Oxford Reference is the home of Oxford University Press's quality reference publishing, bringing together millions of entries, many of which are illustrated, across two trusted collections: Oxford Quick Reference and Oxford Reference Library.

Is Oxford language accurate? ›

Oxford Languages takes an evidence-based approach to language content creation, employing sophisticated corpora technology together with our team's lexical expertise to record and reflect languages meaningfully and accurately.

Should I cite the Oxford Dictionary? ›

If you're accessing the Oxford English Dictionary via a library database and you know who the author is, this is how you cite it. Author's Last Name, First Name. “Title of Entry.” Title of Encyclopedia or Dictionary, edited by Editor's First Name Last Name, Edition if given and not first edition, vol.

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