What does a thesaurus mean

A thesaurus pl. They are often used by writers to help find the best word to express an idea:. Synonym dictionaries have a long history.

Search more than , synonyms, antonyms, related words, and idiomatic phrases. The thesaurus is more than just a list of synonyms; it is your guide to more precise and effective use of language. In the early 19th century, archaeologists borrowed the Latin word thesaurus to denote an ancient treasury, such as that in a temple. Soon after, the word was metaphorically applied to a book containing a treasury of words or information about a particular field. In , the English scholar Peter Mark Roget published his Thesaurus of English Words and Phrases , in which he listed a treasury of semantically related words organized into numerous categories.

What does a thesaurus mean

A thesaurus is a book that lists words or phrases that mean the same thing or almost the same thing—a book of synonyms. Some thesauruses list words in alphabetical order, just like a dictionary; however, many don't. They have an index at the front, with instructions of how to use the index to find the word you want. Read the instructions. A thesaurus can introduce you to new words, or it can suggest words that you already know. For example, you might find skinny, svelte, thin, emaciated , and skeletal as synonyms of slender, yet each synonym leaves a different impression: skinny usually means too thin and weak, svelte means fit and thin, emaciated and skeletal are thin to the point of sickness or death, and thin means little or no fat. Only thin and svelte provide approximately the same tone and meaning as slender. Simply searching for the new word on the internet may sometimes give you a clue as to how a word is used. One good web site for finding a word used in context is www. You can search for a word and find how other authors have used it. How to Use a Thesaurus. In any case, look through a thesaurus and you'll find many riches to help you express yourself!

In addition to its taxonomic organization, the Historical Thesaurus of English includes the date when each word came to have a given meaning.

Add to word list Add to word list. Books: reference books. Examples of thesaurus. That one's going right into my sciencey thesaurus. From Slate Magazine. They recorded their answers on a laptop that featured commonly used word-processing tools such as spell check and a thesaurus.

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What does a thesaurus mean

Search more than , synonyms, antonyms, related words, and idiomatic phrases. The thesaurus is more than just a list of synonyms; it is your guide to more precise and effective use of language. In the early 19th century, archaeologists borrowed the Latin word thesaurus to denote an ancient treasury, such as that in a temple. Soon after, the word was metaphorically applied to a book containing a treasury of words or information about a particular field. In , the English scholar Peter Mark Roget published his Thesaurus of English Words and Phrases , in which he listed a treasury of semantically related words organized into numerous categories. This work led to the common acceptance of the term thesaurus to refer to "a book of words and their synonyms.

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Strong matches glossary lexicon onomasticon terminology vocabulary. Traditional to English. Get Word of the Day delivered to your inbox! Bilingual synonym dictionaries are designed for language learners. Log In. English—Italian Italian—English. From NPR. The thesaurus is more than just a list of synonyms; it is your guide to more precise and effective use of language. Simply searching for the new word on the internet may sometimes give you a clue as to how a word is used. Traditional Chinese confusables. Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free! In other projects. Wikimedia Commons Wikiversity. What is the pronunciation of thesauri?

A thesaurus is a handy thing, but sometimes seemingly tiny differences in meaning can actually have a huge impact. Instead, day after day I turn to all the wonderful dictionaries, thesauruses, and weird twists on them that are out there on the internet. Had Palin scoured a thesaurus , she could not have come up with a more inflammatory phrase.

Different senses of a word are listed separately. Maurice Waite 3rd ed. Korean to English. From Project Gutenberg. Synonyms: wordbook , wordfinder , treasury , storehouse More Synonyms of thesaurus. German English to German. Contents move to sidebar hide. Wordle Helper. It was Roget who introduced the meaning "collection of words arranged according to sense", in Had Palin scoured a thesaurus , she could not have come up with a more inflammatory phrase. Synonym dictionaries have a long history.