Compact Oxford English Dictionary

This new edition of the Compact Oxford English Dictionary of Current English is a fully revised, updated, and redesigned edition of the Compact Oxford English Dictionary; 2nd edition. It aims to provide up to date and accessible information on the vocabulary of contemporary English in a conveniently sized volume, together with sound practical advice on writing good English in everyday situations. Based on the Concise Oxford English Dictionary (11th Edition), the Compact Oxford English Dictionary is directly informed by the evidence of how the language is actually used today, drawing on the analysis of hundreds of millions of words of real English contained in the Oxford English Corpus. This information is presented in a clear, concise, and accessible way; definitions focus on the typical meanings of words and are written so as to enable the user to understand the meaning of a word quickly and easily, without having to look up technical terms elsewhere in the dictionary. The new design and open layout, with each new section of an entry (phrases, derivaives, usage notes, and etymologies) on a new line, ensures that finding individual sections, senses, and entries is easy to do. The dictionary covers a broad range of vocabulary: while the focus is on the core language of contemporary English, there is also a wide selection of technical terms from specialist areas such as medicine, computing, and biology (for example, endorphin, echinacea, and megapixel). For the new edition, there are thousands more example sentences showing how words are really used; there is also much more help with pronunciation, grammar, and usage. A brand new Effective English section is to be found at the end of the dictionary, which offers the user practical help on achieving good English in everyday situations such as writing CV's, letters of complaint, and business reports, together with a section on formal and informal language and a list of commonly confused words.