Reference - Dictionaries

100 years after its first publication, the twelfth edition of this world-famous bestseller gives the most up-to-date picture of the English language today. The original 1911 edition, revolutionary at the time for its focus on current English and its use of illustrative examples, combined a succinct yet approachable style with coverage of everyday as well as specialist terms. This centenary edition continues this ground-breaking tradition, giving you rich authoritative coverage of English as it is used today. Includes 12 months' acc... read more

Collins Gem English Dictionary In Colour is the world's best-selling small dictionary. With its clear definitions, spelling and grammar tips, and a supplement of the latest new words, this handy little dictionary is the ideal portable companion for all. This new colour edition of the Collins Gem English Dictionary In Colour gives you practical, applied knowledge in your pocket. It contains clear definitions for all the words you need on a daily basis and provides help with spelling and difficult pronunciation. The clear colour layo... read more

Drawing on the unique resources of the Oxford English Dictionary and offering coverage of over 6,000 slang words and expressions from the Cockney 'abaht' to the American term 'zowie', this is the most authoritative dictionary of slang from the 20th and 21st centuries. Stone the Crows: Oxford Dictionary of Modern Slang is a fascinating and entertaining collection, packed with illustrative quotations and providing full details of origins and dates of first printed use. The text contains expressions from around the English-speaking w... read more

Give yourself a head start! Collins New Zealand School Dictionary is the perfect companion for all students aged 11-14. With a clear design and in colour throughout, it is easy to use and full of useful features to help build language confidence and help with work and study. This new edition of Collins New Zealand School Dictionary has been developed with teachers to be the perfect tool for school work and homework. The clear layout makes finding entries exceptionally easy, and full definitions are given in simple language, ofte... read more

Readers of all levels will find this guide essential. Giving examples of real usage, this book provides the basic information about grammar and punctuation that people need on a day-to-day basis. Arranged A-Z, it contains entries for standard grammatical terms as well as dealing with related questions of usage. In addition to explaining basic terms such as 'split infinitive', 'participle', and 'adverb', entries also discuss whether to use 'may' or 'might', 'that' or 'which', and 'it's' or 'its'. The Oxford A-Z of Grammar and Punctu... read more

100 years after its first publication, the twelfth edition of this world-famous bestseller gives the most up-to-date picture of the English language today. The original 1911 edition, revolutionary at the time for its focus on current English and its use of illustrative examples, combined a succinct yet approachable style with coverage of everyday as well as specialist terms. This centenary edition continues this ground-breaking tradition, giving you rich authoritative coverage of English as it is used today. Includes 12 months' acc... read more

Contains more than 150,000 similar or related words. Word usage is included with example phrases to show how the headword is used in context.

With headwords in colour, and quirky character illustrations, this dictionary recounts the absorbing and fascinating history of thousands of words. This new edition takes a fresh look at the cool and curious words we use, and tells the stories of where words come from, whether they are to do with food, the supernatural, fashion, invented words, or words from the 80s, 90s, and noughties. Who ate the first sandwich? Where does abracadabra come from? Would you really be spooked by a zombie? John Ayto, top word expert entertains all ag... read more

Pioneers in dictionary publishing for over 175 years, Collins are now proud to offer the Concise New Zealand Dictionary in print and online. The seventh edition of the groundbreaking Collins Concise Dictionary is the only dictionary in concise format with encyclopedic entries for people, places, and regions. Ideal for families and students, this is essential for anyone who needs a dictionary that supports research in all areas (academic subjects as well as hobbies, sport and recreation) and study. Have confidence - comprehensive a... read more

Published May 2006 Now with COLOUR entry words, this second edition of Collins Essential Thesaurus is the perfect language tool for every situation. With clear, helpful usage notes, and a practical supplement created in partnership with PITMAN TRAINING, this is the ideal thesaurus for office use. Specially tailored to meet the needs of the office user, the new COLOUR Collins Essential Thesaurus has all the words and alternatives the you might need, as well as a huge choice of alternatives.

Specifically designed for New Zealand intermediate and secondary school students, this new edition has been extensively revised and updated. Features include: -Over 20,000 headwords -Lists of common New Zealand abbreviations, acronyms and initialisms -New Zealand flora and fauna can be found in the study pages, together with numerals, days of the week and months of the year in te reo Maori Specific New Zealand content: headwords from te reo Maori and Pacific Island languages are included.

This new edition of Collins New Zealand School Thesaurus is an essential reference tool for all students. Each entry is followed by a wide range of alternative words and examples, making it easy for the user to choose the most appropriate alternative for the context. This updated edition of the School Thesaurus has a clear and easy-to-use layout, with an alphabetical indicator on each page, making it easy to find information quickly. It includes thousands of synonyms and antonyms as well as short definitions for all main entry word... read more

This new edition of the Collins Gem Dictionary and Thesaurus is an indispensable guide to the English language. Part of the Collins Gem range -- the world's best-selling little dictionaries -- it provides dictionary definitions and thesaurus synonyms on the same page for incomparable quick and easy reference. Collins Gem Dictionary and Thesaurus provides the most up-to-date words, clear definitions and accessible same-page dictionary and thesaurus texts -- all in the handy and portable Gem format. In addition to the wide range of... read more

Winner of the Reference Award in the 2005 Montana New Zealand Book Awards The New Zealand Oxford Dictionary is the first large-scale English dictionary especially prepared for New Zealand users. It has been compiled at the New Zealand Dictionary Centre in Wellington, and reflects both the New Zealand Dictionary Centre’s research into New Zealand English and research into international English conducted by Oxford dictionary centres worldwide, especially the research for The Oxford English Dictionary. It contains ov... read more

This unique and authoritative dictionary contains over 1,100 of the most widely used proverbs in English and uses research from the Oxford English Corpus, the world's largest language databank. This edition has been revised and fully updated and includes numerous entirely new entries. It also features expanded coverage of foreign language proverbs currently in use in English. With an emphasis on examples of usage, including the earliest written evidence of its use, this A-Z guide provides a thorough - and fascinating - history for ... read more

Collins Paperback Dictionary and Thesaurus is the perfect reference book to broaden users' knowledge, and is ideal for everyday use.

Collins Mini Dictionary and Thesaurus offers three books in one -- a combined dictionary and thesaurus in colour, plus a useful spelling and punctuation supplement. Its handy size and up-to-date content make it an essential one-stop English reference source. Collins Mini Dictionary and Thesaurus provides up-to-date language coverage in a portable format. The dictionary text provides clear, straightforward definitions reflecting today's language, while the matching thesaurus text gives a generous choice of synonyms, plus highlight... read more

The Concise Oxford English Dictionary, today a world-famous bestseller, has always been a ground-breaking dictionary. In its first edition, The Concise Oxford Dictionary was adapted by Henry Watson Fowler and Francis George Fowler from The Oxford Dictionary (now known as the Oxford English Dictionary). It was revolutionary at the time for covering current English usage and common words and excluding obsolete words. It was the dictionary for speakers and writers in the early 20th century, rival to none. From the beautiful art deco d... read more

Combining scholarly authority with a new awareness of today’s communication demands, Roget’s 21st Century Thesaurus is the simple, reliable way to find the perfect word for your needs. It features an easy-to-use dictionary format plus a revolutionary Concept Index that arranges words by idea, thus enhancing the user’s process of association and leading to scores of additional selections. The inclusion of a wide spectrum of words and phrases with each entry – from sophisticated choices to completely new vocabulary in the language – ... read more