Webster's New World College Dictionary/Thumb Indexed 3rd Edition

You'll never need another dictionary after buying this one...unless it's one specific to a subject you might be studying like medical, legal, etc. Otherwise, this dictionary is the one for everyday use. It's Very comprehensive and gives all definitions...old, new, and rare. It Has all kinds of useful information in the back of the book. I Have ordered several times over the years for self, children, and grandchildren. Worth the purchase. 💯

As a purchaser of Webster's New World Dictionary, Second College Edition published in 1972, I have used this dictionary for nearly 40 years. But as all things do, it's bindings have become compromised with age, and it is beginning to come apart. I've been nursing it along for the past few years mainly because I appreciate the editorial craftsmanship that went into its composition, chiefly the etymological history of the derivation of the words it defines. No other dictionary that I have scanned in recent years (save perhaps the Oxford English Dictionary) seems to go the extra mile when it comes to the preservation of the accuracy of the etymology. The Random House and Merriam Webster dictionaries I have looked at are woefully deficient in this area. I was therefore not looking forward to having to replacing this dictionary with a freshly published book.When I came across the availability of the Webster's New World College Dictionary, Fourth Edition (book with CD-ROM) on Amazon, I jumped at the chance to own it, hoping, sight unseen, that it retained the excellence of editorial craftsmanship that my older volume preserved. To my delight and surprise, it did! Not only that, but the addition of the Reference Supplement in the back is packed with interesting and useful information for quick reference.That this edition has retained the editorial vision and integrity of the first volumes published under the editorship of David B. Guralnik and Joseph H. Friend is a testament to the integrity of the publisher to retain the initial editorial vision for the volume and to carry it forward into future editions.The addition of the CD-ROM only adds to the usefulness of this dictionary, as now I can easily look up anything while at my computer without having to turn one page of the hardcopy volume if I so choose. Having this dictionary available at the click of a mouse is an added feature and time-saving benefit.Not everyone appreciates having the etymology of words documented. But as a former English major in college and a writer, I find this distinction to be useful in being able to determine the context of how words were first used and how that usage has changed over time. People tend to forget the original meaning of words and the significance that they can have on contemporary meanings and connotations, thereby losing insight into their original usage in the past. This can be especially crucial when endeavoring to determine, for instance, the legal meaning or definition of a word, and how the perception of a word's meaning can change over time.I am thoroughly pleased with this most recent edition of the Webster's New World College Dictionary, Fourth Edition that it is highly recommended to anyone considering it or in search of a replacement dictionary for their personal use. You truly won't regret owning this dictionary.

Back when I was poring through various dictionary reviews on Amazon to finally replace my ancient, inadequate paperback dictionary with something worthy of a modern office, I ran across a dictionary that purportedly had the Declaration of Independence in the appendix section. I thought that would be nice for my kids...but this is not that dictionary and I can't find now where I got this idea. Anyway, THIS DICTIONARY has some surprises and for all those nitpicky people out there (like me) who'd like to know ahead of time what to expect, here is what I found:1) When your child comes to you with a homework assignment that requires them to break a word up into syllables, this dictionary will NOT help. In the foreward it says "...the syllabification of words has been revised." This dictionary focuses only on how words are properly divided when the text reaches the end of a line. Therefore you will find (as another 1-star reviewer pointed out) the word vegetable presented as "veg-eta-ble" (center dots are used instead of hyphens) though obviously this doesn't represent what most of us would call the syllables. I guess that is the problem - the editors didn't feel there was enough consensus on syllabification to include it and have assumed they will serve you better by showing how to properly break up words instead.I was thinking perhaps the pronounciation notation could substitute for showing the syllables but I was not happy with the pronounciation information either. An example is the word "bottle" which they suggest is pronounced bot'l (they use an "a" with 2 dots over it instead of my "o", but I have no idea how to type that). I would pronounce it as bot'tle and so I disagree with the given pronounciation and am still just guessing about the syllables. The backup/pocket dictionary I bought (The Merriam-Webster Dictionary, paperback copyright 2004, based on the Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, 11th Edition and part of the Everyday Language Reference Set) happily shows syllables and a pronounciation that makes much more sense to me.2) This dictionary has nice paper and is thumb-indexed. I thought I would really like the thumb-indexing, however the thumb indexes are placed in the general area of the section they indicate instead of where they should be in my mind and I find this annoying. If I wish to use the thumb index to go to the reference section in the back, I end up in the W's (last word on page is "wrongfoot", how apropos!). I still have to flip through the XYZs to get to the appendices.It's better than what I had before, and I think all the dictionaries have some issues, so I still gave this a 4-star review. I may purchase the American Heritage Dictionary at some point - the pictures look nice and I like how there seem to be many places where they discuss the history of certain words and the evolution of their uses as well as how to use the words properly in modern times. That's really why I bought an unabridged dictionary in the first place.

This is without a doubt the best value for the money if you need a really good dictionary. I actually wore out the Second Edition last year after using it for over 20 years. If you are the type of reader who cannot just pass over a word whose meaning is unclear, this is the book for you. It is rare that I do not locate a particular word(even foreign words) that is not in this book. Oh, and if you need the history and root basis of the word, this is an envaluable resource. Illustrations are also very helpful, especially if you are trying to differentiate between say, a rose window and a rosette. Further, I noticed there are many pictures of famous individuals in the Fourth Edition, that were not published in the previous edition. Because of the timing of the 2009 copyright, the 2010 census figures could not, of course, make it to this printing. Many of my friends and family members already have technological devices that incorporate a dictionary/thesaurus as an "app". I'm slow to change from the touch and feel of a paper-based book; I dont see myself going that route for a while, at least. At any rate, if you are like me, this edition beats all on the market, even the unabridged dictionary. Good luck!