Merriam‐Webster Online: The Language Center is a free WWWebster Dictionary and WWWebster Thesaurus available with graphics and text only formats. Comprehensive instructions are online for this Web edition of Merriam‐Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary and Thesaurus. Dictionary entries online reflect the print version plus thesaurus symbol key and a pronunciation key.
Every librarian, professor, college student, and others who use a collegiate dictionary need to be aware of this electronic resource. It is highly recommended for everyone who will use a collegiate dictionary search button on their personal computer or the URL to get needed information. Merriam‐Webster Online is remarkably easy to use, with quick responses and lots of information. Writers who wish to print entries for later reference can do so. The online dictionary and thesaurus are continuously being revised and maintained at the publisher’s ongoing level of excellence, according to information provided by telephone.
This free dictionary could be compared to the online resource, Cambridge International Dictionary of American English. The WWWebster Dictionary is generally more informative with longer entries. It’s a matter of preference for the user. However, screen arrangement seems to make the WWWebster Dictionary easier to read.
Looking up a word is very easy. Simply type in the search box and click on Search or press Enter on the computer keyboard. “You can search for any boldface terms. In the dictionary, that includes main entries, inflected forms (e.g. plurals, past tense forms), variant spellings and run‐on entries (e.g. homographs with a different part of speech or phrases derived from the main entry).” Searching the following sections from the print dictionary is also permitted: abbreviations, foreign words and phrases, biographical names, and geographical names. The use of wildcard characters lets you search for words when you don’t know all the letters in them.
A search brings to the screen “three kinds of results: a full entry for the word you searched; a list of words, compounds, or phrases that contain the word you searched; or a screen informing you that your word was not found’’. Linked text at the end of entries states information about the size and format of the illustration or table when either is provided.
All users may add the dictionary to their browser, place a dictionary search box on their Web site, and choose from other download options. The reviewer found the option to add a lookup button to the Netscape Communicator Toolbar an easy task.
You may be attracted by features that challenge you to test your knowledge of English in the “Daily word game”, “Word of the day” and “Word for the wise” sections. The “Lighter side of language” offers the curious and light‐hearted a look at the evolution of language. Other buttons on the home page supply:
Network licensing a Merriam‐Webster dictionary for your Windows, Macintosh, NT, or UNIX network.
Licensing software products or data from Merriam‐Webster for the business and educational networks, software programs or research.
Customer service information in ample quantity.
Company information includes buttons for a discussion on how a word gets in the dictionary and an essay on the history of English.
In summary, academic librarians will definitely want to put a link on their public catalogs or publicize the availability of the resource. Merriam‐Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary and Thesaurus in the online version will serve librarians as a handy and reliable dictionary with a thesaurus available at the touch of a computer key. It’s also a ready catalog of current products for a publisher whose language information resources are in many libraries. The reviewer found no problems working with this resource. In checking out the resource, a trial telephone call was made to customer service. Personnel were very informative and enthusiastic about assisting.
Since the site was launched in 1996, it has accumulated a number of notable awards which are listed online. Among them are the USA Today’s Hot Site, Yahoo! Award, and the LA Times’ Times Pick Award. A review of the complete list indicates that many Internet users are of the opinion that this is the site to check for information about the English language.
