the Oxford Dictionaries Online

I really enjoy the posts by the good folks over at Language Log. It’s an added bonus when they point me to a new language resource, as they did recently. The occasion of the post was the fact that two days after the infamous Miley Cyrus “twerking” performance, the Oxford Dictionaries announced its quarterly update of new words, which included that word. There was some confusion that the performance was responsible for the entry, when in fact that and other entries had been planned for some time.

However, this gave Ben Zimmer at Language Log the opportunity to mention the Oxford Dictionaries Online, and explain how that site is different from the venerable Oxford English Dictionary. As they themselves explain at the Oxford Dictionaries Online:

While ODO focuses on the current language and practical usage, the OED shows how words and meanings have changed over time.

The Oxford Dictionaries Online site has both a free version and a reasonably priced paid version, while the OED is outrageously expensive.

I’m delighted to have this new resource in my repertoire.

By the way, in case you didn’t know, you can get the definitions from my favorite dictionary, The  American Heritage Dictionary, at the Web site for their 5th edition. It’s doesn’t have the detailed etymology and word roots, but it’s free and well worth bookmarking.