Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, Second Edition [Hardcover]

Random House (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0375425993 | ISBN-13: 978-0375425998 | Publication Date: July 12, 2005 | Edition: 2 Revised

“Look no further!”–Booklist

The Best and Most Affordable Unabridged Dictionary Available Today–Only from Random House Webster’s

With over fifty years of experience in dictionary publishing behind it, Random House Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary is the most definitive single-volume reference of the English language available. This modern dictionary offers an exhaustive, traditional study of the language, while covering the latest, most important developments–ahead of any other dictionary.

The Random House Webster’s Dictionary is designed to meet the wide-ranging needs of today’s students and scholars, who may study ancient documents one hour and surf the Internet the next; of professional writers, who craft poems or write articles for technical journals; of businesspeople, who need to communicate clearly; and–above all–the needs of word lovers.

In addition to standard and specialized vocabulary, this extensive volume contains a wide variety of up-to-date, authoritative information. The Random House Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary is a unique general reference volume for the office, the school, and the entire family.

Important Features Include:
·A New-Words Section in the front of the book with over 1,100 important words and meanings–words such as broadband, urban legend, Disneyfy, and smoothie.
·Over 315,000 entries
·1,500 updated definitions and entries
·2,400 illustrations and spot maps
·Scholarly, up-to-date etymologies, including dates to show when terms entered the language, and showing clearly labeled Americanisms
·Entries for important and famous people; places and historical events; major works of literature, music, and art; names and abbreviations of academic, governmental, social, and fraternal organizations; popular given names; common abbreviations; and foreign terms

More important features include:
·Entries and definitions for current place names, reflecting recent political and geographical changes worldwide
·Coverage of major British, Canadian, and Australian terms
·Over 750,000 example phrases and sentences to show how words are used in context
·Metric equivalents for weight, volume, height, distance, etc., included in definitions and captions
·Endangered species identified
·Comprehensive supplementary notes at many entries, discussing:
-usage problems
-pronunciation questions
-distinctions among synonyms
-regional variations and dialects
·Valuable supplements in the front and back of the dictionary, including:
-synonyms
-antonyms
-words formed from common prefixes
-“Sound-Spelling Correspondences in English”
-“Basic Manual of Style”
-“Words Commonly Confused”



More of the Best Language Reference from Random House Webster’s:

Random House Webster’s College Dictionary with CD-Rom
Random House Webster’s College Thesaurus

Product Details

• Hardcover: 2256 pages
• Publisher: Random House Reference; 2 Revised edition (July 12, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0375425993
• ISBN-13: 978-0375425998
• Product Dimensions: 11.6 x 9.2 x 3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (21 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #67,494 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #69 in Books > Education & Reference > Dictionaries & Thesauruses > English

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

126 of 136 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Don't waste your money; there ARE NO NEW WORDS!, July 13, 2005

By 

N. Thomas "LibraryFiend" - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, Second Edition (Hardcover)

I am utterly disgusted by Random House, a name I had before now considered to be one of the finest English language dictionary publishers in the business. While I still trust their scholarship, their avarice and duplicity has me so disturbed I am boycotting their dictionaries completely.

Unfortunately, my library just purchased this tome, which is billed as a "revised edition" . It is not revised in any manner which I could perceive -- as there aren't ANY NEW WORDS!!! Terms such as "blog", a word that has had a significant impact in interpersonal communication within the last two years or so, SHOULD have been included in a dictionary published in July of this year. But it is nowhere to be found!

Instead, Random House simply repackaged the 1999 edition, exchanging a red hardback cover/dust jacket for a new one in half green/half black. W-o-w. What a waste of money for consumers who are duped into thinking this is a N-E-W edition!

Random House publishers are so distracted by the dollar signs in their oculars they clearly haven't given a second thought as to how they are misleading, nay, ROBBING THEIR BUYERS!

53 of 56 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars This Dictionary was published in 2002 NOT 2005, June 8, 2006

By 

Katsnjabber - See all my reviews

This review is from: Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, Second Edition (Hardcover)

I bought this dictionary because of Random House's reputation AND because RH stated this 2005 edition is the most up-to-date reference work. This claim is one of several claims verified to be false. A RH staffer verified that this dictionary was published in 2002. The edition they sell now is the same exact book (republished/not re-edited in 2005). The next claim states that the front section of the book contains "NEW" words NOT listed in the main section nor introduced in previous edition. This claim is also false. "Agent", for example, is found in the "new words section" AND the main section. In addition, "agent" is not a new word at all. What's it doing in this new word section? A word such as "blog" (web log) should have been included in this new section. Since this dictionary is really from 2002, it is understandable - in hindsight - why it's not listed. This word was not used much, if at all, in 2002. It was easily recognized, however, in 2005. I would NOT have purchased this dictionary if I knew it was from 2002 NOT from 2005. I'm very disappointed at being defrauded.

39 of 40 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars misleading copyright; good unabridged dictionary, excellent software, August 21, 2007

By 

Peter Baum (Onset, MA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary with CD-ROM (Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (W/CD)) (Hardcover)

I can confirm a previous reviewer's complaint - the print version of this Random House Webster's unabridged dictionary has a copyright of 2001. The dictionary is based on the larger and heavier 1987 Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Second Edition. This print version is listed with copyrights of 1987, 1993, 1996, 1997, 1998, and 2001. The CD ROM's WordGenius 4.3 that comes with it has a copyright of 2006.

Although I too was disappointed at not being able to purchase a newly edited dictionary, I must add that I liked the CD ROM a great deal even thought it contains no images. This software allows for all kinds of interesting searches based on approximate spellings, definitions, Boolean operations, wildcard designations, and searches that can even involve both a word specification and a definition specification. For example, by typing in "cat & rat" in the definition field, you can find all words with both "cat" and "rat" in their definitions: "cat and mouse," "farmer in the dell," "ratter," and "whisker." By typing "*book*" in the headword field and "v" (verb) in the definition field, you can find all verbs that contain "book" within them: "book," "double-book," "overbook," "prebook," and "rebook." The possibilities here are nearly endless.

To summarize: if you don't already own a good unabridged dictionary, this is a good one (as current dictionaries go). The software is well done, powerful, and fun. The publisher (and Amazon) get very bad marks for misleading the public regarding the copyright dates.