Oxford English Dictionary facts for kids
Seven of the twenty volumes of printed second edition of the Oxford English Dictionary (1989)
|
|
|
|
|
| Country | United Kingdom |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Publisher | Oxford University Press |
| Published | 1884–1928 (first edition) 1989 (second edition) Third edition in preparation |
The Oxford English Dictionary (or OED) is a very important dictionary. It is published by the Oxford University Press in England. It is the largest dictionary of the English language.
The OED shows how English words have changed over time. It is a helpful tool for writers and scholars. It explains how words have been used throughout history.
The second edition of the dictionary was huge. It had 21,728 pages spread across 20 volumes. This edition was published in 1989. It included 231,100 main words and 47,100 old or out-of-date words.
The OED's Long History
Work on this massive dictionary started way back in 1857. But it took a long time to get ready. The first parts of the dictionary were published in 1884. Back then, it had a different name: A New English Dictionary on historical principles; founded mainly on the materials collected by the Philological Society.
In 1895, people started calling it The Oxford English Dictionary (OED). This name was first used on the covers. By 1928, the complete dictionary was printed in ten large books.
Later, in 1933, The Oxford English Dictionary was printed again. This time it was in twelve volumes, plus an extra book called a supplement. More supplements were added over the years. Finally, in 1989, the second edition was released.
Since the year 2000, a third edition of the dictionary has been in the works. About one-third of this new edition is now finished.
Digital Dictionary Access
The very first electronic version of the dictionary came out in 1988. An online version has been available since 2000. This online version is very popular. In April 2014, it was used over two million times each month.
The third edition of the dictionary will probably only be available online. Nigel Portwood, who is in charge of Oxford University Press, thinks it might never be printed on paper again.
Images for kids
-
Frederick Furnivall, 1825–1910
-
William Chester Minor, 1834–1920
-
James Murray in the Scriptorium at Banbury Road
-
A quotation slip as used in the compilation of the OED, illustrating the word flood.
-
The 78 Banbury Road, Oxford, house, erstwhile residence of James Murray, Editor of the Oxford English Dictionary
-
Editing an entry of the NOED using LEXX
-
A printout of the SGML markup used in the computerization of the OED, showing pencil annotations used to mark corrections.
-
A screenshot of the first version of the OED second edition CD-ROM software.
-
OED2 4th Edition CD-ROM.
-
The Compact Oxford English Dictionary (second edition, 1991).
-
Part of an entry in the 1991 compact edition, with a centimetre scale showing the very small type sizes used.
See also
In Spanish: Oxford English Dictionary para niños
