dictionary

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA ^(key): /ˈdɪkʃən(ə)ri/, SAMPA: /"dIkS@n(@)ri/
• (US) enPR: dĭk'shə-nĕr"ē, IPA ^(key): /ˈdɪkʃənˌɛri/, SAMPA: /"dIkS@n%Eri/

• Audio (UK)

  (file)

• Audio (US)

  (file)

Noun

Singular dictionary

Plural dictionaries

A dictionary.

Some bilingual dictionaries.

1. (countable) A dictionary is a book that tells you what words mean, and how to spell them. A lot of dictionaries will also tell you about etymology (where words come from) and pronunciation (how to speak them).
   • Synonyms: lexicon and wordbook

   You are reading an online dictionary right now.

   The words in a printed dictionary are in alphabetical order.

   I looked up the dictionary to find the meaning of the word business.

Related words

• definition
• diction
• thesaurus
• reference