The New Oxford American Dictionary

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Binding: Hardcover Dewey Decimal Number: 423.1 EAN: 9780195170771 ISBN: 0195170776 Label: Oxford University Press, USA Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA Number Of Items: 1 Number Of Pages: 2096 Publication Date: 2005-05-19 Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA Studio: Oxford University Press, USA
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Editorial Reviews: Produced by Oxford's American Dictionaries Program, and drawing on the expertise of scores of American scholars and advisors, The New Oxford American Dictionary sets the standard of excellence for lexicography in this country. Here is the most accurate and richly descriptive picture of American English ever offered in any dictionary. Oxford's American editors drew on our 200-million-word databank of contemporary North American English, plus the unrivaled citation files of the world-renowned Oxford English Dictionary. We started with American evidence -- an unparalleled resource unique to Oxford. Our staff logged more than 50 editor-years, checking every entry and every definition. Oxford's ongoing North American Reading Program, begun in the early 1980s, keeps our lexicographers in touch with fresh evidence of our language and usage--in novels and newspapers, in public records and magazines, and on-line, too. To provide unprecedented clarity, the entries are organized around core meanings, reflecting the way people think about words and eliminating the clutter and confusion of a traditional dictionary entry. Each entry plainly shows the major meaning or meanings of the word, plus any related senses, arranged in intuitive constellations of connected meanings. Definitions are supplemented by illustrative, in-context examples of actual usage. This major new edition of The New Oxford American Dictionary includes a guide to the pronunciations on every page, a new etymology essay by Anatoly Liberman, completely updated and revised maps, and more than a thousand new entries, covering everything new in our language from low-carb to warblog and beyond . The New Oxford American Dictionary is designed to serve the user clearly, simply, and quickly, with the precise guidance you expect from Oxford University Press. With in-depth and up-to-date coverage that all users need and expect -- for reading and study, for technical terms, for language guidance -- it continues the tradition of scholarship and lexicographic excellence that are the hallmarks of every Oxford dictionary. *Features:* 250,000 entries and definitions -- with more than 2,000 new entries in this edition The most accurate and richly descriptive picture of American English ever offered in any dictionary Provides unprecedented clarity in which the entries are organized around core meanings, reflecting the way people think about words and eliminating the clutter and confusion of a traditional dictionary entry Each entry shows the major meaning or meanings of the word, plus any related senses, arranged in intuitive constellations of connected meanings Definitions are supplemented by illustrative, in-context examples of actual usage
Spotlight customer reviews: Customer Rating: Summary: The New Oxford American Dictionary, Second Edition Comment: Wonderful, thorough reference. Good use of white space to make locating easy. Only one complaint--this is a textbook sized volume and can be a little unweildy. Customer Rating: Summary: Great book! Comment: Love the book and the delivery time was wonderful, too. The first thing you do when you get a new dictionary, of course, is to look up an obscure word. We looked up "perspicuous" and got our first belly laugh of the day when the definition was "clearly expressed and easily understood." The words are bolded so you can see them easily and the definitions are concise and clear. Customer Rating: Summary: Lacks a lot of words. Comment: I bought this hoping it would be "complete". It is a disappointment. I watch Bill O'Reilly and like to look up the words he closes with.... most are not in this dictionary. "Bloviate" is not here.... plus lots of other words, some admittedly not common. I'm disappointed. I expected better. JKH Customer Rating: Summary: Too few entries. Comment: I simply come across far too many words that are just not in this dictionary. Also, a significant problem with the Kindle edition: if a word has more than one entry, only the first entry is shown or accessible. Very disappointing. Customer Rating: Summary: Popular Dictionary, not good for Proper Names Comment: This dictionary is a Pop dictionary, and is not really appropriate for scholarly reference or for people looking for more detailed information. It's fine for general definitions and etymology, but really poor for proper names. Each proper name entry is the same length (about three sentences), regardless of who the person is. Thus Tom Cruise gets nearly as much space as Abraham Lincoln, and the entries for Stephen King and Martin Luther King are the same length. Important historical figures like Jan Hus--the Bohemian revolutionary whose religious ideas predated the Reformation--are nowhere to be found, but if you're looking for Julia Roberts, no problem. The editorical decisions on the entries for nations are equally bizarre. For instance, the entry on the United States is only slightly longer than the one for Tunisia. No offense to Tunisians, but this seems like an absurd attempt to be even-handed and to not make value judgements about the importance of one place over another. The nation entries also don't provide any history, demographics, or topography--really they don't provide much of anything beyond a generic description that tells you what continent you're on. This is not a dictionary for people who like details. No definition is more than 2-3 sentences, regardless of how important it is. The editors also don't make any decisions about what is important. Why does Bach get the same treatment as Scriabin? I seriously question the motives of Oxford University Press. It seems like an intentionally dumbed-down edition meant to appeal to Americans--something we should all take offense at. More Reviews