Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, 11th Edition [Hardcover]

Merriam-Webster (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0877798095 | ISBN-13: 978-0877798095 | Publication Date: April 23, 2008 | Edition: 11th

This version of Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, Eleventh Edition, is burgundy leather-look, and thumb-notched. For this new edition, America’s largest staff of lexicographers made more than 100,000 changes and added more than 10,000 new words and senses, such as 'convergence', 'Frankenfood', 'phat', 'psyops', and 'vermiculture'. The Eleventh Edition, with over 225,000 definitions, also features more than 40,000 usage examples — more than ever before — which clarify confused or disputed terms. Additionally, thousands of phrases and idioms help distinguish vocabulary for language learners. Special sections include A Handbook of Style, An Essay on the English Language, and Signs and Symbols. Over 55 million copies of Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary have been sold, spanning a time period of over 100 years. Includes an electronic version of the dictionary and a free one-year online subscription.

--This text refers to an alternate Hardcover edition.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

*Starred Review* The first Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (M-W) was published in 1898, and the tenth edition had a copyright date of 1993. The eleventh edition brings many new words, a CD-ROM, and a free one-year subscription to Merriam-Webster Collegiate.com, which includes the text of the dictionary as well as the Collegiate Thesaurus, Collegiate Encyclopedia, and Merriam-Webster's Spanish-English Dictionary.

Now for the numbers. M-W has a paper file of 15,700,000 citations from which their lexicographers chose 10,000 new words, for a total of 165,000 entries and 225,000 definitions. There are 100,000 "changes" from the tenth edition. Users asked for more usage examples and idioms and phrases, so there are now 40,000 examples and a "significant" increase in idioms. There are 91,000 pronunciations, 33,000 etymologies, 2,700 illustrative quotations, 650 foreign words and phrases, and 700 illustrations.

As the world rushes on, so does the time taken for words to become accepted. It used to be at least ten years before a new word was considered for inclusion; now it may take as few as four years. M-W staff certainly have become the purveyors of the words that we use. Terms added to this edition include Botox, comb-over, crunch-exercise, dead-cat bounce, dead presidents, dead tree, def, exfoliant, gimme cap, identity theft, phat, and tweener. As would be expected, some entries had to be eliminated because words are invented faster than they go out of favor. Anyone seeking definitions of record changer and pantdress will need an unabridged or older dictionary.

M-W still includes separate sections for geographical and biographical names, but abbreviations are now interfiled in the main section. Perhaps the next edition will interfile the other two sections.

Criticisms of the eleventh edition are mostly cosmetic. The use of photographs and shaded boxes for usage notes would make it more attractive to users. There are, however, more than 200 new black-and-white line drawings. The Col legiate Dictionary's closest competitor, the American Heritage College Dictionary (4th ed.), published last year, makes good use of photographs and illustrations in the margins. It contains a number of words (gangsta, goth) that are also new to this edition of M-W.

The online version has a number of search options, including a reverse dictionary (if you can think of the correct words), the etymology of words, and those that are the same part of speech. The most interesting option is the date feature. Paging through the words attributed to a particular year is a definite retrospective of recollections. Words of 1980 include balsamic vinegar, exit poll, NIMBY, and ziplock. An improvement to the online version would be a search button so the back button doesn't need to be used as much. It would be less cumbersome if the illustrations were included with the definitions rather than requiring another click. Because the one-year free subscription to the online version is only mentioned on the dust jacket, some users will fail to see it. Unfortunately, the free subscription is not available free to libraries or schools. One wonders if the CD-ROM is really necessary because it provides only basic searching.

For serious dictionary collections and fans of dictionaries from this venerable publisher, now in partnership with Britannica, the eleventh edition is a definite buy. With a list price of $25.95, it is a bargain for individuals. Libraries with limited budgets that purchased the American Heritage College Dictionary in 2002 may not need another college dictionary this year. RBB
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

Sets a high standard for future desk reference. --Library Journal

A road map to where English is headed -- The Village Voice

At last the ease of the Internet combined with the authority of a trusted name in reference. --BookPage --This text refers to an alternate Hardcover edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 1664 pages
• Publisher: Merriam-Webster, Inc.; 11th edition (April 23, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0877798095
• ISBN-13: 978-0877798095
• Product Dimensions: 9.9 x 7.3 x 2.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (252 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #486 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #1 in Books > Education & Reference > Dictionaries & Thesauruses > English
  • #8 in Books > Medical Books > Medicine > Reference
  • #34 in Books > Education & Reference > Education

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

216 of 222 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars superb reference tool, July 7, 2004

By 

audrey (white mtns) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, 11th Edition (Red Kivar Binding with Jacket) (Hardcover)

This is a fine dictionary. It even smells good. Too hefty to be portable, it is nevertheless a perfect desk dictionary, starting with a seventeen-page explanatory chart and notes, an essay on the English language, and a guide to pronunciation. te volume continues with excellent definitions that are sometimes accompanied by b&w line drawings, and finishes with sections on foreign words & phrases, biographical names, geographical names, signs & symbols in various fields of endeavo, punctuation, capitals & italics, documenting sources, forms of address and an index. [..]

This is the most comprehensive collegiate dictionary to date, with many new entries since 1996's tenth edition, and it is well organized wih a nice clean font (though it may be a bit troublesome for those who are far-sighted). It always amazes me that we can purchase so much information so inexpensively. This is a terrific resource -- it's time to update your dictionary!!

215 of 223 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Nice updating for the standard shorter American dictionary, August 23, 2003

By 

Robert Moore (Chicago, IL USA) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

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This review is from: Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, 11th Edition (Hardcover)

For several decades now, THE MERRIAM-WEBSTER'S COLLEGIATE DICTIONARY has served as the standard American English dictionary. I have done a good deal of copyediting over the years, and every publisher I have worked with has specified this dictionary (along with the Webster's Unabridged) as the standard governoring the way that American English words are spells and defined. Although one can feel overwhelmed by the sheer number of dictionaries in the reference section of any good bookstore, this volume is as close to authoritative as we have in the United States. One might have a preference for another, but this is the only one that enjoys widespread authoritative acceptance.

The dust jacket explains the ways that the new 11th edition has been expanded, but personally, while I am quite certain that it has been expanded, I have not noticed a great deal of difference from the 10th edition. It may be definitive and improved, but most of the improvements will be difficult for anyone to detect. The new CD-ROM included with it, however, is a vast improvement on the previous software that was developed based on the 10th edition. When the 10th edition first came out, CD software was not widely available. A CD version of the dictionary did eventually come out, but it was somewhat rudimentary. The new CD-ROM, however, is a huge improvement. For instance, when looking up any word, a column will display a number of words that approximate the word that your are attempting to look up. If you can merely approximate the spelling, you can frequently find the correct word. Furthermore, by double clicking on any word in the online dictionary, you will pull up the listing for that word. The CD-ROM also has a link to the Internet.

Let's face it. Buying dictionaries for most people is about as exciting as having one's oil changed. But like oil changes, dictionaries are essential. For the foreseeable future, this one is going to remain the definitive American English dictionary.

87 of 93 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Worth the price for the CD-ROM alone, July 10, 2003

By 

spheremusic (Princeton, NJ) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, 11th Edition (Hardcover)

Unlike prescriptive dictionaries such as the American Heritage Dictionary, which rely on self-appointed panels of "experts" to decide what correct usage should be, descriptive dictionaries such as this and Merriam-Webster's Third International try to keep pace with how the language is actually used by speakers. This may explain why the Webster's Collegiate dictionaries have been the standard reference in the American publishing industry for a long time.

This is easily the best dictionary of its class, period. It has an extraordinarily large number of entries and its definitions are concise and easy to understand. The only shortcoming is that there are few example sentences, but this is a necessary tradeoff to keep the size under control. For sheer richness of information it doesn't compare to the New Shorter OED, for example, but then again you can't toss the NSOED into your backpack and take it to school with you. This book is light and compact.

But the thing that really sets this dictionary apart is the CD-ROM. You can search for words using up to 15 different operations, including "rhymes with," "is a cryptogram of," "homophones are," "etymology includes," etc. You can use AND and OR operators to combine the various operations. These search functions are a tremendous asset to anybody who works with words, particularly writers, poets, and songwriters.

And did I mention that you get a free one-year subscription to their online dictionary with your purchase?

This package is a tremendous value for the money and really belongs in every home and office. And I have no doubt that Webster's 11 will continue to be the gold standard in the publishing industry for the foreseeable future.<I> --This text refers to an edition which conatins a CD-ROM. Not all editions of this item contain a CD. Please check the item desription for further information.--</I>