More than 150,000 synonyms, antonyms, related and contrasted words, and idioms. Alphabetically organized for ease of use. Abundant usage examples. Brief definitions describe shared meanings. Sans serif font.
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About the Author
The Merriam brothers desired a continuity of editorship that would link Noah Webster's efforts with their own editions, so they selected Chauncey A. Goodrich, Webster's son-in-law and literary heir, who had been trained in lexicography by Webster himself, to be their editor in chief. Webster's son William also served as an editor of that first Merriam-Webster dictionary, which was published on September 24, 1847.
Although Webster's work was honored, his big dictionaries had never sold well. The 1828 edition was priced at a whopping $20; in 13 years its 2,500 copies had not sold out. Similarly, the 1841 edition, only slightly more affordable at $15, moved slowly. Assuming that a lower price would increase sales, the Merriams introduced the 1847 edition at $6, and although Webster's heirs initially questioned this move, extraordinary sales that brought them $250,000 in royalties over the ensuing 25 years convinced them that the Merriams' decision had been abundantly sound.
The first Merriam-Webster dictionary was greeted with wide acclaim. President James K. Polk, General Zachary Taylor (hero of the Mexican War and later president himself), 31 U.S. senators, and other prominent people hailed it unreservedly. In 1850 its acceptance as a resource for students began when Massachusetts ordered a copy for every school and New York placed a similar order for 10,000 copies to be used in schools throughout the state. Eventually school use would spread throughout the country. In becoming America's most trusted authority on the English language, Merriam-Webster dictionaries had taken on a role of public responsibility demanded of few other publishing companies.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
38 of 39 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
Not Recommended,
By
This review is from: The Merriam-Webster Thesaurus (Paperback)
When I got back into writing this year, I figured I needed a thesaurus more current than the old Random House College Edition Thesaurus, circa 1984, that was in my desk. And using [...] just didn't provide enough context to the words. This Webster Thesaurus was a cheap purchase which I figured would be easy to use - heck, a thesaurus is a thesaurus, right? I was wrong.
Using it for about a month now has been an endless source of frustration. Almost every word I seem to look up has a one sentence definition followed by a reference to another word, where the synonyms actually are. So I have to flip to that page. It is 667 pages long and yet it seems very few of the entries are actually useful. And when I finally get to a page with a lot of synonyms, I rarely seem to find the right word that I want, for whatever reason. Just a massive disappointment. I'm currently deciding between The Oxford Writer's Thesaurus or Roget's College Thesaurus and when either of them arrive, I'm throwing this thesaurus into the trash. It's wasted much more time than it was worth.
22 of 23 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Extremely Small Print,
By
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: The Merriam-Webster Thesaurus (Mass Market Paperback)
Even people with good eye sight will struggle with this...had I known that I would have got the large print version. As for the thesaurus itself.. it is pretty good. There are a few little code symbols you have to remember and you may have to bounce around the book a bit to get that "perfect" word. It is full of words though and probably a good buy for kids grades 8-12. If it would have had just a little bit larger print I would have rated it 4 stars but being able to read it is an important thing...especially if you have to work on something a little later in the evening when your eyes are slightly strained all ready.
5.0 out of 5 stars
It does what its supposed to,
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: The Merriam-Webster Thesaurus (Paperback)
Not much to say about a thesaurus. Bought it for my boyfriend who writes a lot and he claims its perfect. I guess it does the job!
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