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Words! Literacy Club

The Book Shelf

These are just a few of the excellent reference books that have been a huge help to me and my students in resolving the questions that arise with regards to the language.

Having an extensive reference library is most desirable for anyone seriously wishing to investigate the language and an absolute must for any classroom.

Unfortunately, there is a paucity of reference books in schools and those they do have in abundance are often an insult to the intelligence of the students. 

Word Origins - The Hidden Histories of English Words from A to Z, 2nd Edition, A & C Black, London, 2005

English Dictionary—complete and unabridged, 7th edition, HarperCollins Publishers, London, 2005

Greek—English Lexicon abridged  Oxford University Press, Oxford, 1st edit 1891, reprint.1998

Ologies and Isms: A Dictionary Word Beginnings and Endings Oxford University Press, 2002

Dictionary of Etymology, The H.W. Wilson Company, Edinburgh, reprint 2002
Text Box: Ayto, John Text Box: Quinion, Michael Text Box: Liddell & Scott’s Text Box: Collins Text Box: Chamber’s
Reference Books

Latin Dictionary, Latin-English, English to Latin Wiley Publishing, NY, 1968
Text Box: Cassell’s

Words! Literacy Club is copyright © Lesley Catterall 2003-2007 All rights reserved.

Criteria for A Good Dictionary

 

Each word should be listed in lower case unless it qualifies as a proper noun.

The phonetic transcription for the word should be listed in the symbols of the IPA (International Phonetic Association) and a pronunciation key should be provided somewhere in the dictionary.

A clear set of definitions should be provided that cover the full range of meanings including archaic or obsolete so you can understand the connotations of the word as well as its original denotation.

The diachronic etymology of the word i.e. its origin and meaning, should be listed with the definition.

Prefixes and suffixes should be listed separately.
New is Not Always Best

 

Any dictionary with these criteria is worthy of a word detective. And remember, you do not always need a bright new glossy book, sometimes the old can serve just as well.

 

Surprising many older dictionaries from your parents or grandparents eras will more than meet these criteria and may have the added value of already existing in the family. So check out what you have at home already.