Finding Dictionaries Online
UNB Libraries provides access to hundreds on online dictionaries, from language dictionaries to subject-specific titles on a wide range of topics. Check Reference Materials on the library website to search for dictionary titles, or choose from the selection listed below.
Key Resources include several large collections of online reference works. Choose one of these if you're not sure of where to begin, or if you want to search across multiple titles or multiple subject areas.
Additional Resources include a selection of English-language or bilingual dictionaries. To find a subject dictionary, try one of the Key Resources below, or consult "Reference Sources" in a research guide for your subject area.
Key Resources
-
Canadian Oxford Dictionary
The Canadian Oxford Dictionary combines coverage of international English with information on English as it is particularly used in Canada. Definitions are presented so that the meaning most familiar to Canadians appears first and foremost. It features 2,200 uniquely Canadian words and senses, 350 usage notes, 7,000 idiomatic expressions, 5,500 biographical entries, and over 5,600 place names.
-
Oxford Reference
Multi-part database of the online versions of Oxford University Press texts. Each topical division contains the searchable version of the latest edition of published dictionaries and encyclopedias. Additionally, information about Oxford University Press is provided. Online texts will be updated after new editions of the print monographs are published.Covers the humanities and social sciences.
Collection limited to subscribed 5-user access -
Oxford English dictionary (OED)
"This unique and powerful resource offers unprecedented access to the definitive record of the meaning, history and evolution of more than 600,000 words over the last 1,500 years."A complete text of the 2nd. ed. of the Oxford English dictionary with quarterly updates, including revisions not available in any other form.
Subscribed multi-user unlimited access -
Oxford Dictionary of American Usage and Style, The
"What is the singular of 'paparazzi'? Is 'graffiti' singular or plural? Should I say 'empathic' or 'empathetic'? What is the correct pronunciation of 'concierge'? In this book of crisp, precise and often witty pronouncements on modern American English, Bryan Garner decisively answers these and hundreds of other questions that bedevil those who care about the language. Garner draws on a host of evidence to support his judgements, citing thousands of examples - good, bad, and ugly - from sources such as The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and Newsweek."
Collection limited to subscribed 5-user access -
Oxford Dictionary of English Grammar, The (1 ed.)
"This accessible and comprehensive dictionary comes to the aid of both the general reader and the student or teacher, offering straightforward and immediate access to 1,000 grammatical terms and their meanings. All the currently accepted terms of grammar are included, as well as older, traditional names, controversial new coinages, and items from the study of other languages. Concise definitions of the wider subject of linguistics, including phonetics and transformational grammar, are accompanied by examples of language in use, and frequent quotations from existing works on grammar."
Collection limited to subscribed 5-user access
Additional Resources
-
Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, The
"Based on The Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology, the principal authority on the origin and development of English words, The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Etymology contains a wealth of information about the English language and its history. Find out where the words 'bungalow' and 'assassin' came from, what 'nice' meant in the Middle Ages and much more."
Collection limited to subscribed 5-user access -
Concise Oxford Dictionary of Linguistics, The (3 ed.)
"This invaluable work is the most authoritative and up-to-date dictionary of linguistics available. It provides concise, informative entries across the whole field of linguistics. With entries ranging from epiglottal and morpheme to Austronesian and Navajo, the dictionary is an ideal reference work for students and anyone with an interest in language and its study."
Collection limited to subscribed 5-user access -
A New Dictionary of Eponyms
"This dictionary features the entertaining histories behind hundreds of eponyms, such as bowdlerize (from the censorious Thomas Bowdler), bikini from the atoll, and the Salisbury steak, a dish of hamburger and brown gravy named after James H. Salisbury, an English physician who promoted a diet of ground beef. There are hundreds more - discover to whom we owe the terms hooker, sideburn, zeppelin, the cardigan sweater, pamphlet, robot, and argyle socks."
Collection limited to subscribed 5-user access -
Oxford Dictionary of Idioms, The (4 ed.)
"This Dictionary covers metaphorical phrases, familiar sayings and proverbs, and similes, providing illustrative quotations from sources as varied as the Bible, the Spectator, and Agatha Christie. Explore the meanings and origins of such well-known idioms as 'set the world alight', 'cost an arm and a leg', 'once in a blue moon', and 'the tip of the iceberg'."
Collection limited to subscribed 5-user access -
Oxford Dictionary of Modern Quotations, The (3 ed.)
"The Oxford Dictionary of Modern Quotations is a collection of over 5,000 quotations, representing key voices and events of the last 100 years and the beginnings of the new century. Coverage ranges from the worlds of art, literature, science, and politics to popular culture, and material is drawn from the electronic media as well as print."
Collection limited to subscribed 5-user access -
Oxford Essential Dictionary of Foreign Terms in English, The
"This comprehensive reference includes detailed information on the spelling, history, and usage of thousands of foreign words and phrases used by English speakers. There are words from more than forty languages, including Arabic, Chinese, Dutch, Latin, Portuguese, Spanish, and Yiddish. Terms from cooking, fashion, and music jostle with others from fine arts, history, law, politics, business, and travel in this great reference to words from around the globe."
Collection limited to subscribed 5-user access -
Oxford Paperback Thesaurus, The (4 ed.)
"This thesaurus covers nearly one-third of a million alternative and opposite words. The most useful alternative word is given first, with words closest in meaning to the entry word given in capitals. Opposites and related terms are clearly marked, and thousands of example sentences help users select the right word. There is clear labelling of informal, dialect, literary, and technical words."
Collection limited to subscribed 5-user access -
Pocket Fowler's Modern English Usage (2 ed.)
"This Pocket edition is based primarily on Robert W. Burchfield's renowned The New Fowler's Modern English Usage. Robert Allen has taken all the key elements from the best-selling parent work, rewriting entries to present the arguments and recommendations in a more accessible and digestible form, and has added completely new topics such as American English, new words, and gender-neutrality. Clear guidance on grammar, usage, syntax, and style for English is provided."
Collection limited to subscribed 5-user access -
Pocket Oxford Latin Dictionary: English-Latin, The (3 ed.)
"This practical dictionary is designed specifically to meet the needs of students in their first years of studying Latin, as well as those with an interest in the Latin language or the classical world."
Collection limited to subscribed 5-user access