OXFORD ENGLISH DICTIONARY (OED)

The Oxford English Dictionary database offers word definitions, pronunciations, word origins, quotations, and date charts based on the print version of the Oxford English Dictionary 2nd Ed. and the latest edition currently in progress. The print version of the OED is located in the Gorgas Reference Index Area, call number PE 1625 .O87 1989 v.1 - v.20.

Getting Started

Basic Searching

  1. On the "Welcome to OED Online" web page, type the word you want to find in the "Find Word" box, located in the top right corner of the browser window and click on "Find Word".

  1. A list of results is displayed, or, if there is a single result, the entry is displayed automatically.

  2. Click on any of the entry names to move there.

  3. You will then see a page with definitions and quotations related to that definition of the word.

  4. At the top of the page you will see buttons for Pronunciation, Spellings, Etymology (Word Origin), Quotations, and Date Chart. Clicking on any of these buttons will bring up the requested information. Clicking on the button again will remove the information.

  5. On the left-hand side of the page, you will see words that appear in the dictionary both before and after the term you searched. You can scroll up or down this list or use the up or down arrow to display the next fifty terms as they appear in the dictionary.

Improving Searches

Simple Searching

1. More advanced than Find Word searching, the Simple Search allows you to expand your search to find a word anywhere it appears in the full text of the OED or to narrow your search to find a word in a particular part of the dictionary entry.

2. Click "Simple Search" at the bottom-left of the screen.

3. Type the word you are looking for in the "Search for" box and then click on the drop-down menu to choose what part of the OED you want to search for this word.

4. Click on the hourglass to start the search.

5. More Options allows you to narrow your search further by only returning results for your word if it appears within a certain proximity to another word that you specify.

Advanced Searching

1. Advanced Searching is best when you are trying to find very specific information about a word.

2. Click on Advanced Search at the bottom-left of the screen.

3. You can use Boolean searching to search for multiple terms in specific parts of the OED.

4. This search feature allows you to do case-sensitive searching or exact character searching.

5. You can perform a search within a previous search.

6. You can restrict a search to find results within a particular part of speech.

7. This search feature allows you to search for a term within a certain proximity to another word.

Printing, emailing, and saving

Printing: Click the print button at the bottom-right of the screen. This will open another browser window that shows a preview of the information you are about to print. Click "File" at the top of the browser window. Then click "Print" and follow the on-screen directions.

Emailing: You can email a link to a dictionary entry by clicking on the mail button at the bottom-right of the screen. This will bring up another browser window. Enter the email address that you want to send the link and then click "Mail". You will receive a notice that the email has been sent. The email will provide a link to the entry in the OED for the next three days for free.

Saving: To save an entry you must first click on the print button at the bottom-right of the screen. This will open another browser window that shows a preview of the information you are about to save to file. Click "File" at the top of the browser window. Then click "Save As" and follow the on-screen directions.

Help