Customer Reviews

Flip Dictionary

5 star:		(18)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Hard to describe how useful this book is. Tell people about it, and they're likely to say, 'Oh, you mean a thesaurus,' and you say, 'No, not exactly,' and then they say, 'Oh, a reverse dictionary?' and you say, 'No. Better.' It's for those times when you sort of know what you're trying to say, but you either can't think of the word or you've used a word too much and you need to jiggle loose from your cranium some new ways of trying to say it. And it leads you on and on down an ever branching set of references so pretty soon you find yourself just sitting down and reading the Flip Dictionary instead of writing. It's that much fun.
An invaluable resource, recommended to me by a fellow writer.

I've owned Roget's Descriptive Word Finder for almost a year. I've had Flip Dictionary for just a month and it is already more ragged than my Roget from usage. A thesaurus like Roget's is great for nouns and adjectives, but Flip Dictionary covers every noun, verb and preposition that thesauruses typically overlook.

I bought Flip Dictionary, FD, to keep my writing fresh and unpredictable and that's precisely what it does. Maybe you're like myself and have exhausted the usefulness of your word processor's thesaurus, get the Flip Dictionary. Honestly, I flip through this book just for fun.

Here's a big bonus: Flip Dictionary saves horrid spellers like myself. For example, you may know what a word means and how it sounds, but you can't spell it, and spell check is no help either. Here's how Flip Dictionary solves this problem. Say I wanted to use the word that sounds like "crawlch", which means to bend over, and I have no idea how to properly spell "crawlch". But I've heard this word used several times and I know it's a real word.

I just flip to "bend" in the Flip Dictionary, and wouldn't you know it, the reference for bend refers to "crouch" the real way to spell "crawlch". That saved me a lot of time and I'll use FD for the same problems in the future.

Mark Twain tells us the there's a colossal difference between the right word and a word that just fits. Perhaps Mr. Twain did not use a Flip Dictionary but I imagined if he were around today, he'd write, "Buy it".

The Flip Dictionary contains all sorts of word alternatives for words and word ideas. When you are writing, and you keep using the same word over and over, or can't express a word clearly, this is the book to turn to. In addition to being an indispensable writing resource, it is a lot of fun to read if you are a word lover. The Flip Dictionary also contains many interesting sidebars for words with many derivatives and alternate possibilites. I keep it on my desk at all times.
(Dr. Simeon Hein is the author of Opening Minds: A Journey of Extraordinary Encounters, Crop Circles, and Resonance (Mount Baldy Press, Inc., (2002))

As an online nursing student, I write many papers. I find that I tend to use the same words over and over. I also sometimes have a word that is close, but doesnt' exactly express my meaning. The Flip Dictionary is fast, easy to use, and I always get my word. It is the best buy I made last year.

I first saw this dictionary at my library. I thought it would be very useful when I write. I write all of the time. Sometimes I get stuck at a certain word or phrase. I know what I want to say but I know there's a better or different way to say it. I would flip through the book and find exactly what I needed. And since having the dictionary--I went out to buy one for myself--my writing has improve. I'm not using little words as often in my writings. I think every writer--or anyone for that matter--should get this dictionary. It'll help improve your vocabulary. I know that I'll be using this book for while! ^_^

I received this book as a gift and do not know how I ever wrote without this tool. I write instruction manuals and was cursed (and influenced) by my English professor to never use a thesaurus because it is not an absolute synonym replacement. HUH? With carrying this baggage around for many years, I am picky about colloquial expression, slang and word-find reference books. This is an EXCELLENT reference book with an outstanding index for looking up the exact word you need. - JoJo Canton

As a journalsit, I never found Roget's Thesaurus to be of the slightest use, but I turn up Dr Kifner's Flip Dictionary at least once a week. Evan Whitton

My wife an I use this book all the time, we've even bought more as gifts for other friends of ours that write- it is very helpful for choosing colorful words rather than the daily mundane.

If you like to write and love words, this is a must have!

Hope you enjoy it like we do

John & Lily

I'm a writer and an English tutor, so I use this a lot! I'm trying to get my boss to buy a few for us tutors, since so many of our students are english second language. Great for people like me whose idea of specific is "the thing that does the stuff on the doohicky."

What a great way to find just the word you are looking for a a lot you weren't even looking for!