Finding definitions
Monday, September 8th by Carla |
Where do you go to find a definition online?
My students tend to go to Dictionary.com simply because they can remember the name so easily. I encourage them to go to Merriam-Webster.com because the site offers so much in addition to definitions. We may have found a third site that will do in a pinch, though: Definr.com. |
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Billed as “incredibly fast dictionary,” I can state without hesitation that it was so fast and clean that some of my students adopted it on the spot as their favorite dictionary site. They even remembered the next day that it has an odd spelling.
If you use the Firebox browser, Definr offers some plug-ins to better integrate word search. (Click on “Tools.”) And the Word of the Day option could provide some good SAT vocabulary practice. At the end of every week or two, students could review, find connections among the words, and/or use them in their own writing. Right now Definr is limited to definitions, synonyms, and word in context. If you’re working with etymology or with antonyms, you’ll need an additional resource. But if you’re reading a short story online and need to look up a word, this site could be helpful. |
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September 8th, 2008 at 12:34 pm
I like it. I tested it on zoanthropy, thinking it wouldn’t know it, and boom! There it was.
I also like alphadictionary.com, but definr is so clean and easy that it might become my favorite.
September 8th, 2008 at 6:03 pm
Wow! That WAS fast. My students are going to love this! Thank you very much!
September 17th, 2008 at 7:52 pm
I’m a big fan of WordReference.com. It’s wonderful for any world language teachers out there, but it also does English definitions. It give the actual text of several dictionaries, providing the students with the part of speech and other relevant information most online dictionaries leave out, and (for other-languages purposes) it also gives translations of common phrases, etc.