The Random House Crossword Puzzle Dictionary [Mass Market Paperback]

Stephen Elliott (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1, 1995

THE RANDOM HOUSE CROSSWORD PUZZLE DICTIONARY
MORE THAN 700,000 CLUES AND ANSWER WORDS!
THE MOST COMPREHENSIVE POCKET CROSSWORD DICTIONARY ON THE MARKET!
COMPREHENSIVE
More clue words, special categories, and subcategories than any comparable dictionary
In-depth coverage of people, places, and things
AUTHORITATIVE
Extensive coverage of modern history, popular culture, politics, literature, sports, and much more
General vocabulary and synonyms checked against the voluminous Random House dictionary and thesaurus files
CLEARLY ORGANIZED
Clue words and clue information printed in easy-to-spot bold typeface
All answer words grouped by their number of letters

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Every crossword fan should keep this reference within reach. The softcover edition is billed as the most comprehensive pocket crossword dictionary on market. And this hybrid dictionary, thesaurus and almanac lives up to the promise. Probable answers to clue words are listed alphabetically and by number of letters. Literary, dramatic, historical and other references are usefully arranged. "Elephant Man" listings, for example, include the film's director and cast members. "Festival" includes the festival names of the Greek and Roman deities. Look under "Language" for the mother tongues of nearly three pages of countries. A very handy book!

From the Publisher

I'm one of the millions of people who do crossword puzzles every week. If you love them as much as I do, this will be the last reference tool you'll ever need. With more than 700,000 clue and answer words, grouped by number of letters for your puzzle-solving ease, this book is the most comprehensive one on the market. And, it's compact, paperback format makes it easy to carry anywhere!

--Laura Paczosa, Editorial Assistant

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 1216 pages
• Publisher: Ballantine Books; 2nd edition (March 1, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0804113491
• ISBN-13: 978-0804113496
• Product Dimensions: 4.2 x 1.6 x 6.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #334,171 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #9 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Reference > Education > Questions & Answers

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

49 of 49 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Random House Crossword Dictionary, November 22, 1999

By 

Kathryn H Schilling "mrsboog89" (Phila, Pa) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Random House Crossword Puzzle Dictionary (Mass Market Paperback)

Being a crossword "freak" with shelves and shelves of reference books on various subjects I was delighted to find this dictionary. Besides the standard crossword dictionary fare it includes many facts found in Almanacs (awards, sports trivia, etc) plus extensive information on people ranging from Presidents to movie stars plus detailed information on plays and even television shows. When I travel this is the only reference book I need to carry.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best Of The Lot...., March 18, 2010

By 

Ambergris "John Thomas" (New England.....USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 50 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: The Random House Crossword Puzzle Dictionary (Mass Market Paperback)

I've owned about a half dozen crossword dictionaries over the years. Most I just selected based on price. (The cheapest that is). This Random House edition is not only very reasonably priced, but the very best I have come across as well in a softcover. If you have never seen or owned a crossword dictionary, you should know that they differ from regular dictionaries in that they offer little in the way of meaning, only synonyms of words. (The actually meaning being pretty much able to be deduced from that alone in most cases). They offer the word or clue in bold and then follow it up with as many synonyms that seem reasonable, or the editors could think of. Even if the correct word is not listed, it still aides you in sending you in the right direction as to the clue words meaning. This book also carries a healthy amount of trivia style data for those clues that ask something specific about movies, famous people, locations, political figures, cities of the world, events, etc. Personally I feel it is by far the most comprehensive reference of its kind anywhere near its price. And I highly recommend it.

One last thing, one problem that I have found with a lot of these books is the print being either too small, or the clue word not being bold enough to see and scan effectively. Sometimes the clue word is barely bigger or bolder than the synonyms that follow and it takes longer to find what your looking for. And other times the print is just to darn small for those of us whose eyes have seen better days. The Random House book has both very bold and clear clue words, and the print is a reasonable size. All 'round the very best of the lot in this price range in my opinion...

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good Choice, February 24, 2006

By 

L. M. Moorcock "Old Crone" (Bastrop, TX United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Random House Crossword Puzzle Dictionary (Mass Market Paperback)

I bought this and the MILLION WORD DICTIONARY for my Mom. She liked them both but found this one slightly less useful than the other. Still a good dictionary though.