What dictionary do you prefer?

I usually stick with my Oxford American Dictionary, but I have noticed that the ones my school tends to have are sub-par compared to it. I don’t know which ones they have there, but it just goes to show… I lost my train of thought… it shows something… damn.

The OED, easily. I love just browsing it and my school subscribes.

Depends. I usually go first to my American Heritage 4th ed. because it’s out available and accessible on a stand—no need to wrestle a big old heavy tome off a shelf. It’s great for pronunciation and has that wonderful appendix for roots.

For thoroughness and depth, I want the OED, which I have in two condensed (the pages, not the content—need magnifying glass) versions in my living room, along with the Am. Her. 3 and the big Webster’s Third.

For feeling like I really have a book in my hands, I want the massive Webster’s, which takes a different slant from the OED and the Am. Her. When I’m seriously questing after something, I consult them all plus a stray Random House that’s nearby on a shelf. For a subset of the big Webster’s, it’s the handy collegiate, not a serious dictionary by my standards but often cited as the house standard by business clients.

If I just want to get a grip on something quickly, I use Dictionary.com, but I don’t ever stake my reputation on what I find there. It’s just a convenience.

For specialized purposes there are dictionaries of several disciplines, more like little encyclopedias, actually, and a variety of language dictionaries. I also use two children’s dictionaries, which don’t have a lot of breadth but are wonderful for getting right to the essence of the terms they do define.

I guess overall the OED would be my favorite (it’s the one I’d choose to keep if I could have only one), but I turn to the Am. Her. 4 most often.

@Jeruba I couldn’t do OED if I had to do it in print. Am. Her. is the way to go for print, although I’m definitely all about the Googling these days.

I won’t consider a dictionary that doesn’t define vulgarity, swear words and common slang. If the publishers are going to bowdlerize a dictionary, then they can sell it to other bowdlerizers.

@Jeruba I’m curious, have you ever read this book?

Being in many linguistics classes, we’ve had to make ample usage of the OED and I’ve become quite familiar with it. I still use dictionary.com most of the time, but my favorite dictionary for more comprehensive definitions and etymologies is the OED online.

@roundsquare, no, I haven’t, but it’s absolutely up my alley for bedtime reading. I’ve read both [ 1 2 ] of Simon Winchester’s narratives about the OED. Thanks for the lead. Do you recommend it?

@Jeruba Not sure, but its on my summer reading list. The person who gave the talk today showed it to us.

By the way, some context: There is a case where Scalia looked up the definition of an important word (“modify”) and found support for his view in all the dictionaries he used except for the American Heritage 3rd Edition which he then disparaged.

dictionary.com is my favorite, what @DominicX said. internet is taking over the world For books, the one I have in my office at home is “Webster’s Ninth Collegiate Dictionary”. The one I have in my living room is “The Merriam-Webster Dictionary”. I don’t like it all that much, but that’s probably because it’s a small, quick dictionary.

@roundsquare, one reason I have so many dictionaries is that I generally keep looking until I find the one that agrees with me. If necessary, I annotate them.

I’ve just ordered a used copy of your suggested book from Amazon. Let’s compare notes when we’ve both read it.

Update a month later, @roundsquare: I’m currently reading The Story of Webster’s Third: Philip Gove’s Controversial Dictionary and its Critics, by Herbert C. Morton—the book you recommended above. If you liked the Winchester books, this appeals to the very same interests.