Library
Web Reference Sites
Language
The Acronym
Database
Acronym Finder: Searchable database containing common acronyms and abbreviations
about all subjects, with a focus on computers, technology, telecommunications
and the military.
Acronym Search: Enter the acronym
or abbreviation to find out what it stands for.
Official
U.S. Postal Service Abbreviations
Opaui List of Acronym and Abbreviation
Sites: Links to hundreds of subject-specific acronym and abbreviation
sites.
American-British,
British-American Dictionary
The American Heritage
Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition
The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language: Another site for
this useful dictionary, from Yahoo!
Australian English Glossary
Bloomsbury
Research Centre: Site is a free on-line database of reference books
of over 17,000 entries, cross-referenced and indexed. A search engine is
available to search on a wide range of subjects including literature, art,
myth, human thought, quotations and a thesaurus or browse through each book
at your leisure.
The DICT Multiple Dictionary Database: This site provides an uncluttered
interface and easy access to multiple dictionary definitions.
Dictionary of Phrase and Fable: Over 18,000 entries that reveal the etymologies,
trace the origins and otherwise catalog “words with a tale to tell.”
Glossary of Quaint Southernisms
Hutchinson
Dictionary of Difficult Words: Search the Hutchinson Dictionary
of Difficult Words’ A-Z index of over 13,900 difficult words to increase
your vocabulary or just find out what those words really mean!
Hutchinson Dictionary of English Usage: The Hutchinson Dictionary of English
Usage can explain the difference and guide your choice, so search the 1,600 entries
to find the precise word to convey your meaning.
Jargon Buster: If you’re confused by conjugation and puzzled by the postpositive then this
service by Oxford Dictionaries called ‘jargon buster’ should help you cut
through the technical terms and grab hold of grammar, literary terms, and
other such bamboozlement.
Lexical FreeNet: Site allows the user to search for relationships between
words, concepts, and people. It is a combination thesaurus, rhyming dictionary,
pun generator, and concept navigator.
Merriam-Webster OnLine Language Center: Includes the Merriam-Webster Collegiate
Dictionary and Thesaurus.
OneLook Dictionaries: Look up a word
in multiple dictionaries at once.
Oxford English Dictionary Online: On-campus use only.
The Phrase Finder: Online resource for generating ideas for headlines, advertising
copy, song lyrics etc. Site also contains a large database of the meanings
and origins of English phrases and sayings.
RhymeZone: Enter a word and find rhyming words, synonyms, homophones, related
words, definitions, and more.
Roget’s II: The New Thesaurus: Searchable online version of the 1995 edition,
it contains 35,000 synonyms, along with concise definitions and cross-references.
SlangSite.com: Dictionary of recent slang.
Visual Thesaurus: An experiment in language and interface, Plumb Design’s
Visual Thesaurus is both an artistic exploration and a tool to explore, study,
and analyze the structure of language. By displaying the interrelationships between
words and meanings as spatial maps, the Visual Thesaurus translates language
into a visible architecture.
Webster’s
Unabridged Dictionary: From 1913.
Wordsmyth: Educational dictionary-thesaurus.
Includes a crossword puzzle solver.
xrefer: When you type in a key word the service searches through encyclopedias,
dictionaries, thesauri, books of quotations and other works covering a wide range
of subjects.Subscription service.
yourDictionary.com: Comprehensive
and authoritative portal for language and language-related products and services
on the Web with more than 1,800 dictionaries with more than 250 languages.
American-British, British-American Dictionary
American Heritage Book of English
Usage: Guidelines for grammar, style and word choice.
APA Style.org: Site offers
guidelines for electronic citations. Keep current with the latest information
for citing all your electronic sources, including e-mail, Web sites, electronic
databases, etc.
AskOxford: This site by the Oxford University Press allows you to ask questions
about the English language to linguistic experts. Other site features include:
History of Crosswords and Scrabble; Jargon Buster; Word of the Day; A Quote From;
Better Writing Tips; and Word Games.
Australian English
Glossary
The Blue Book of Grammar and Punctuation
Common Errors in English: Tips on hundreds of confusing words and pairs
such as affect/effect, adapt/adopt, advice/advise, etc.
Daily Grammar: Site sends you
e-mail messages with a grammar lesson five days of the week and a quiz on
the sixth day. You can look at all the lessons in an archive section.
The Elements of Style : The classic work by Strunk.
Grammar Slammer: Help with grammar, punctuation, common mistakes, etc.
Guide to Grammar and Writing
Hutchinson Dictionary of English Usage: The Hutchinson Dictionary of English
Usage can explain the difference and guide your choice, so search the 1,600 entries
to find the precise word to convey your meaning.
Indispensable Writing Resources: You'll find everything on and off the Net that you could possibly need in
writing or researching a paper, including links to all sorts of reference
material, links to writing labs, links to Web search engines, and links to
writing-related Web sites.
The King’s English: An indispensable resource for anyone concerned about
correct English usage.
The Nuts and Bolts of College Writing: Site offers a practical, example-filled
guide to writing college essays, including help on style, structure, and mechanics.
Online English
Grammar
Punctuation Made Simple
Self-Study Quizzes for ESL Students
Shakespeare’s Grammar: Understanding the language of Shakespeare.
Spellcheck.net
: Free spell checking for any word or text.
Traditional Grammar: Site provides a free twelve chapter interactive book
on an introduction to the basic syntactic structure of Modern English and the
most common prescriptive errors in formal writing and how to avoid them.
Vocabulary.com: Site offers a wide variety of free vocabulary puzzles and
tests, plus lesson plans for teachers, to enhance vocabulary mastery.
The Word Detective: Site is the online version of “The Word Detective,” a
newspaper column answering readers' questions about words and language.
WordNet: A Lexical Database for English
Words for the Wise: Site by Merriam-Webster provides access to Word for
the Wise, a popular radio program broadcast on public radio stations nationwide.
The show offers a daily glimpse into the intriguing world of words and language.
You can read transcripts of past shows from the months listed below, and as of
August 2001 you can also listen to audio recordings of the program.
Word Spy: Gathers recently coined
words, existing words that have enjoyed a recent renaissance, and older words
that are being used in new ways.
Write101.com: Over 200 pages of articles
on writing and is designed to help everyone improve their writing and editing
skills. The process involves looking at grammar, punctuation, and structure
in a way that allows you to re-evaluate your writing style and improve the
way you communicate in text.
Writing Skills: This site by Infoplease provides tips how to write topics,
including: essays, research papers, biographies, and book reports.
American
Sign Language Browser
ASL Fingerspelling: This site has a number of tools for novices and experts alike
to help you become proficient at fingerspelling. For novices,
site has a standard dictionary to learn the basic fingershapes.
Ethnologue: Languages of the
world.
The Hobson Jobson Anglo-Indian Dictionary
Internet Living Swahili Dictionary: Features online dictionaries, Swahili learning resources, a discussion forum,
links to Africa related sites and images from East Africa.
Latin Language and Literature: This list of online resources provides links
to Latin-English and multilingual dictionaries, study aides, and literature resources.
Omniglot: A Guide to Writing Systems: This Web site provides a guide to
over 150 different alphabets, syllabaries and other writing systems including
a few you will find nowhere else. It also contains details of many of the languages
written with those writing systems and links to a wide range of language-related
resources, such as fonts, online dictionaries and online language courses.
SEAsite: offers language instruction
materials as well as cultural, political and social information about countries
in Southeast Asia including Thailand, Indonesia, Burma, Vietnam and the Philippines.
SpellOnLine: Free
international spell checking for any text or any Web page.
Travlang Translating Dictionaries: Translate words from several languages
to English or other foreign languages.
yourDictionary.com: Comprehensive and authoritative portal for language
and language-related products and services on the Web with more than 1,800 dictionaries
with more than 250 languages.
Annabelle’s Quotation Guide
BrainyQuote: Browse over 30,000 quotations by 8,000 authors. Get a quote-a-day
newsletter on many topics that have famous quotes and current quips from today’s
celebrities.
Familiar Quotations: The Bartlett work from 1919.
Grocott’s Quotations: Thematic
Quoteland.com: Quotes arranged
by topic.
Quotez: More than 13,500 quotations.
Simpson’s Contemporary Quotations: Over 10,000 quotations.
