Dictionaries -- Well-Known English Dictionaries

from http://www.rong-chang.com/dictionaries.htm

Well-Known English Dictionaries

• Your Dictionary. The #1 Online Dictionary gives you definitions, thesaurus entries, spelling, pronunciation, and etymology results.

• Cambridge International Dictionaries. Online dictionaries of English, idioms, and phrasal verbs.

• Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary. Provides a free online dictionary, thesaurus, audio pronunciation, word games, and word of the day.

• Newbury House dictionary of American English. Over 40,000 entries with simple, clear definitions, and a wealth of sample sentences and idioms.

• Dictionary.com. Largest free online dictionary and audio pronunciation.

• Vocabulary. The world's fastest, smartest dictionary: Start typing a word and you'll see the definition.

Bilingual Dictionaries

• English-Chinese Dictionary.Type in an English word and get its meaning in Chinese.

• Chinese-English Dictionary.Type in Chinese and get its meaning in English.

• English<>Spanish Dictionary. Compilation of general and academic terminology that students and professionals encounter.

• Dictionary of Spanish. With over 54,000 entries. You can enter English word to find Spanish word or enter Spanish word to find English word. You can also hear the pronunciation of the word.

• English-French Dictionary. The dictionary contains over 75,000 terms. You can search for an English word or a French word.

• English-German Dictionary. Nearly 230,000 entries. A service provided by LEO - Link Everything Online.

• English-Japanese Dictionary. Typing in an English word and get definitions in Japanese.

• English-Korean Dictionary. Typing in an English word and get definitions in Korean.

• BabLa Dictionary. Special features include search filters, synonyms, pronunciation, sample sentences.

Visual Dictionaries

• Picture Dictionary. A completely free, online multilingual picture dictionary designed for ESL students.

• Visual Dictionary Online. 20,000 terms with contextual definitions, developed by terminology experts.

• Visual Dictionary. To learn by way of image with thematic, clear and precise pages, with concise and rigorous texts.

Dictionaries of Proper Nouns

• A Pronouncing Dictionary of Proper Nouns, including a list of common names for English speakers, names of 50 states, and 43 Presidents.

• Pronunciation of Names of People and Places. English Pronunciation Guide to the Names of People, Places, and Stuff.

• Pronunciation of Words and Phrases. Type in a word or phrase to listen to its pronunciation, including proper nouns.

Acronym

• Acronym Finder. The world's largest and most comprehensive dictionary of acronyms and abbreviations.

• Acronym. A big acronym database. New acronyms are constantly added by users.

• Acronym Guide. A Directory of Common Acronyms and Abbreviations by Topic.

Thesaurus

• Online Thesaurus. Excellent thesaurus, a dictionary of synonyms by Lexico Publishing Group, LLC.

• thesaurus.com. Quickly find accurate and up-to-date synonyms, antonyms, and related words.

• Visual Thesaurus. An online thesaurus and dictionary of over 145,000 words that you explore using an interactive map.

• Free Thesaurus. Unique and fun interactive tool for visual thesaurus.

Homonym

• Homonym. The list contains homonyms as well as homophones with definintions for each word.

Other Dictionaries

• Answers. Search for definitions, pronunciation, and even translation.

• Word Reference. You can get definitions in different languages, by Michael Kellogg of WordReference.com.

• WordNet Search. An online lexical reference system whose design is inspired by current psycholinguistic theories of human lexical memory.

• Netlingo. It contains hundreds of words and definitions that describe the technology and community world of the Web.

• Online Dictionary of Computing. It contains over 13,000 hypertext links to different terms.

• Meta Dictionary. This site searches through over 400 dictionaries for the word you type in.

• The Phrase Finder. Typing a word and getting a list of phrases.

• A Multi-Purpose Dictionary. It is a dictionary where you can find rhymes, synonyms, match consonants, and even search for pictures for the word you type in.

• Free Online Dictionary � Comprehensive English dictionary with word definitions, synonyms, and antonyms.

Figurative Language

Prefixes of numbers:

5. Prefixes of numbers:

PrefixMeaningExamples

refix	Meaning	Examples
semi-	half	semicircle
mono-	one	monochromatic
bi-	two	binary
tri-	three	triangle
quad-	four	quadruple
penta-	five	pentagon
hex-	six	hexadecimal
sept(em)-	seven	September
oct-	eight	octal
dec-	ten	decimal
multi-	many	multiplexor, multicoloured

Big Picture C3 Knowledge

Dawn -- Knowledge is Light - Big Picture C3

Diagramming Sentences

Basics of Reed-Kellogg diagrams

I. Subject vs. predicate

To diagram a sentence, you have to divide it into its component parts, or constituents. The most important cut is between subject and predicate, which are separated with a vertical line. The predicate contains the verb marked for tense plus any objects or subjective or objective complements. The predicate always contains a verb phrase.

The minimal verb phrase is just a verb with tense marking (Pattern VI):

It rained.

That's ridiculous. (Pattern II) 

Alice considered the situation. (pattern VII) 

Alice sent Bob an email. (Pattern VIII) 

Alice considers Bob a fool. (Pattern X) 

II. Key elements and modifiers

The horizontal main line is for key structural elements: the subject, the verb, the direct object, the subjective complement, and the objective complement. Modifiers are placed under the element they modify:

Jack's fat cat purred loudly. 

Note, for example, that the head noun of a subject noun phrase and all of its modifiers go into the subject slot with the modifiers attached to the head noun:

The people who live in that small yellow house with the picket fence across the street from me raise emus. 

Similarly, verb modifiers (adverbials) are placed under the verb:

Hidden in the dense pile, the fat cat sat on the fluffy mat grinning smugly until I shooed her away. 

Note that the active and passive participles grinning and hidden have special l-shaped diagrams that distinguishes them from adjectives.

III. Diagrams and word order

Diagrams are graphic representations of sentence structure. They are not intended as linear representations of the order of words in sentences; instead they represent relationships between the elements of sentences and their modifiers.

For example, adverbs are often fairly movable within sentences, but a diagram places them under the verb to show their function, regardless of where they appear in the sentence:

Balefully, the monster eyed Beowulf.
or
The monster eyed Beowulf balefully.

Similarly, the adverbial prepositional phrase can appear in several different places in these sentences:

On Monday, I'm driving to Dallas to see the sights.
I'm driving to Dallas on Monday to see the sights.
I''m driving to Dallas to see the sights on Monday.
To see the sights, I'm driving to Dallas on Monday.

In this sentence, the clause that you find grammar frightening is appositive to (renames) the dummy subject it. The diagram sticks both into the subject slot at the left:

It is a shame that you find grammar scary. 

In sentences with expletive there, the expletive is not considered a part of the sentence's structure. Even though it usually comes first in the spoken or written sentence, it floats up over the main line in a diagram.

There is a unicorn in the garden. 

Subordinate clauses may precede main clauses in speaking or writing, but they go under the main clause in a diagram. An adverbial clause is always attached to the verb it modifies:

After the ants had ruined their picnic, Miranda and Sam went to MacDonald's.