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Title: Webster's Third New International Dictionary, Unabridged by Philip Babcock Gove, Merriam-Webster ISBN: 0-87779-201-1 Publisher: Merriam-Webster, Inc. Pub. Date: January, 2002 Format: Hardcover Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $129.00 |
Average Customer Rating: 3.94 (32 reviews)
Rating: 2
Summary: Don't be fooled: This dictionary is from 1961!
Comment: The Webster's Third New International Dictionary is a huge and wonderful resource that has more than 400,000 word definitions. It's probably the second most comprehensive listing behind the Oxford English Dictionary.
I have a copy of this same dictionary from 1981. The primary copyright is 1961. The book listed here is supposedly published in 2002. All three editions are in fact the _third_ edition of the same dictionary.
One only need to look up certain words. Take "negro." This dictionary defines this as acceptable term for common useage. The term "anti-Semite" is defined not just as someone who has hostility towards Jews, but also anyone who opposes Zionism or sympathizes with who those who oppose Israel. Talk about a loaded political definition. Look the same term in any other modern English dictionary and you'll see a simple "Hostility towards Jews" definition.
Who knows how many other severely dated terms and definitions are in this dictionary.
A recent newspaper article stated that they don't plan to release the fourth edition of this dictonary for another 7 to 10 years. We're already looking at a dictionary that's 45 years old and it'll be 52+ years in age before it gets an update?
If you're looking at a dictionary of this magnitude my recommendation is to go for the "Short Oxford English Diciontary."
Rating: 4
Summary: W3 excludes proper nouns; names such as Russia
Comment: As reply to the reader from Brooklyn, I would point out that W3 discusses at length, in its explanitory notes, that this reference work defines no proper nouns. Names of people, such as George W. Bush, places such as Russia, and things, such as the Hope diamond, are not included among its entries. The editors explain that the printed version could not have been contained in a single volume if such encylopedic terms had been included. If you frequently need to reference such terms, you will need to supplement this specialized language reference with a geographical or biographical dictionary, or an encyclopedia.
Our reader from Brooklyn is quite correct in his assertion that W3 is dated. Apart from adding new words, this work has not had a major revision since it was first published in 1963. Many of its definitions are dated. The work reflects the mood and spirit of the 1950's more than of the new millenium. Still, its scholarship is unassailable, and the work, as a whole, is still invaluable. Until the folks at Merriam-Webster can update it--no easy task--this dictionary is still the standard for American English. Rumor has it that a new edition is being planned. These mammoth dictionaries take about a decade to refurbish, so this one is it, for the nonce.
Regarding performance, 30 seconds access time sounds very slow. I suspect this reflects an older and slower Mac. Are any other folks experiencing this?
Rating: 4
Summary: Good, but needs a revision
Comment: I bought one new in 2003 - this edition has an addenda section of new words in the front (89 pages) with a 2002 copyright and then the main text of the dictionary with a 1961 copyright.
The new words in the addenda are not listed in the main text, so if you look up a word in the main text and can't find it, you then have to double check the addenda section. The layout of the text looks like it remains the same as the 1961 template, and it is not easy to read. In contrast, the layout of the Shorter OED is quite nice and a pleasant alternative.
The words and definitions of the Webster's Third New International Dictionary are extensive, authoritative, and a slight bit dated.
In addition to the hard copy, I also have a subscription to the online version, which I have found to be very user-friendly and very useful. I find that if I'm online, I'll use the online version of this dictionary as my first choice (followed by OneLook Dictionaries).
If I use a print dictionary, my first choice is usually "The New Oxford American Dictionary" for a quick sense of core meanings and related senses. My second choice is usually the 2 volume "Shorter Oxford English Dictionary" for a more historic sense of the word. My third choice is the 20 volume OED. My fourth choice is usually this dictionary.
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Title: Roget International Thesaurus Indexed Edition by Barbara Ann Kipfer ISBN: 0060185759 Publisher: HarperCollins Pub. Date: 15 November, 2001 List Price(USD): $21.95 |
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Title: The Chicago Manual of Style, 15th Edition by University of Chicago Press Staff ISBN: 0226104036 Publisher: University of Chicago Press (Trd) Pub. Date: 01 August, 2003 List Price(USD): $55.00 |
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Title: Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary & Thesaurus, Electronic Edition by Merriam Webster, Merriam-Webster, Inc Merriam-Webster ISBN: 0877794715 Publisher: Merriam-Webster, Inc. Pub. Date: November, 2003 List Price(USD): $14.95 |
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Title: Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, 11th Edition by Merriam-Webster ISBN: 0877798095 Publisher: Merriam-Webster, Inc. Pub. Date: July, 2003 List Price(USD): $26.95 |
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Title: Merriam-Webster's Geographical Dictionary by Merriam-Webster ISBN: 0877795460 Publisher: Merriam-Webster, Inc. Pub. Date: April, 1997 List Price(USD): $32.95 |
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