Oxford Rhyming Dictionary [Hardcover]

Clive Upton (Editor), Eben Upton (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 21, 2004 | ISBN-10: 0192801155 | ISBN-13: 978-0192801159

Comprehensive and completely up to date, the Oxford Rhyming Dictionary is the ultimate rhymer's companion. An ideal reference tool for songwriters, poets, copywriters, and lyricists, and useful for students and teachers in the classroom, it offers over 85,000 words offering the best possible chance of finding even the most elusive rhyme.

This dictionary is simple and straightforward to use: you locate the word you need in the index, and are referred to the place in the main text where you will find the words that rhyme with it. Browse a little further and you will also find, near by, close rhymes and half rhymes for the word in question. Words are organized according to their sound rather than alphabetically, which means you can find a rhyme to match a word as it is spoken, rather than how it is spelt.

Whether you're in search of a gluey Drambuie, pastrami with tsunami, or a Salt Lake City subcommittee, this dictionary will help to increase your vocabulary and will take your rhyming skills to a whole new level.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Aspiring poets or lyricists can rejoice in the publication of this work, which lists more than 85,000 words and also includes proper nouns, names, places, and trademarked brands. The dictionary is based on the Oxford Dictionary of Pronunciation for Current English (2001), which was written by Clive Upton, and the rhymes reflect current British-English pronunciations.

Anyone who has tried to use a rhyming dictionary with no knowledge of phonetics has undoubtedly been frustrated by the experience. Despite directions for usage, these resources can still be quite complicated. The Oxford volume makes it much easier to find rhymes, because in lieu of phonetics, it is based on an easy-to-use index. To find a rhyme, the user needs merely to look up a word in the index and go to the numeric section indicated. There, the word will be grouped with similar-sounding words, and the reader can browse through that section to find other close rhymes. This work is so expansive that readers should expect to find most commonly used words. The authors try to keep up-to-date with current language and to that end include such words as email and CD-ROM.

This resource can be helpful to those writing poetry, songs, and jingles and also will appeal to word lovers in general. Though it is based on British-English pronunciation, American English is not so different as to render it ineffective. Recommended for all high-school, academic, and public libraries. Susanna Eng
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Review

"An index on a rarely treated topic and of this scope---making up more than half of the book and listing close to 95,000 words---is hard to come by."--Library Journal

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 666 pages
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA (October 21, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0192801155
• ISBN-13: 978-0192801159
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 6.3 x 1.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #417,841 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

29 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Oxford Rhyming Dictionary, October 7, 2005

By 

Dr. David E. Luellen - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Oxford Rhyming Dictionary (Hardcover)

This fine publication is a splendid addition to my reference library! With over 85,000 entries, it is the most comprehensive rhyming dictionary I have ever seen. Using this reference work for rhyming words is great not only for poets, but for anyone who wants to add more innovation and fun to his writing. I especially like being able to choose from "strong" rhymes or rhymes that are less strong. It is easy to use because of the extensive index where one begins as he searches for that prime rhyme. Use it at teatime, playtime, showtime, dinnertime, springtime or any time! Use it in health and wealth!

22 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Good... but be warned!, February 10, 2008

By 

R. Migge "troubadour" (Brooklyn, NY United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Oxford Rhyming Dictionary (Hardcover)

This is quite an amazing rhyming dictionary. My only problem with it is that it's based on British English pronunciations. While most words are pronounced similarly between the Brits and the Yanks, it can be very frustrating to have to sift through the results and the entries themselves to find the rhymes that match our pronunciations. Ultimately, I plan to replace this one with something more... American.

21 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Must for Versifiers, August 26, 2005

By 

Irving F. Miller (Chicago, IL USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Oxford Rhyming Dictionary (Hardcover)

Anyone writing verse needs this dictionary. It is by far the most complete rhyming dictionary available in English, and easy to use as well.