Dictionary.com is an online dictionary whose domain was first registered on May 14, 1995. The primary content on Dictionary.com is a proprietary dictionary based on Random House Unabridged Dictionary, with editors for the site providing new and updated definitions. Supplementary content comes from the Collins English Dictionary, American Heritage Dictionary and others. It is owned by IXL Learning.
 | |
Type of site | Dictionary |
|---|---|
| Available in | English |
| Owner | IXL Learning |
| Created by |
|
| URL | www |
| Commercial | Yes |
| Launched | May 14, 1995 |
History
Dictionary.com was founded by Brian Kariger and Daniel Fierro as part of Lexico Publishing, which also started Thesaurus.com and Reference.com. At the time of its launch, it was one of the web's first in-depth reference sites. In July 2008, Lexico Publishing Group, LLC, was acquired by Ask.com, an IAC company, and renamed Dictionary.com, LLC. In 2018, IAC sold Dictionary.com and Thesaurus.com to Rock Holdings. At the time of the sale, Dictionary.com was the 447th most trafficked website in the United States, according to the website tracking service SimilarWeb. In 2015, they estimated that there are 5.5 billion word searches a year on its site. In 2024, Rock Holdings sold Dictionary.com and Thesaurus.com to IXL Learning.
Features
Among its features, Dictionary.com offers a Word of the Day, a crossword solver, and a pop culture dictionary that includes emoji and slang sections.
In 2010, Dictionary.com began a Word of the Year feature with the word change. The selection is based on search trends on the site throughout the year and the news events that drive them.Dictionary.com's words of the year have been:
- 2010: change
- 2011: tergiversate
- 2012: bluster
- 2013: privacy
- 2014: exposure
- 2015: identity
- 2016: xenophobia
- 2017: complicit
- 2018: misinformation
- 2019: existential
- 2020: pandemic
- 2021: allyship
- 2022: woman
- 2023: hallucinate
- 2024: demure
In April 2009, they launched an app on the Apple App Store allowing users to find definitions and synonyms. It also included audio pronunciations, alphabetical indexing, and synonym example sentences. Since then, Dictionary.com released a standalone thesaurus app called Thesaurus Rex along with education apps, Dictionary.com Flashcards, Word Dynamo, and Learning to Read with Zoo Animals.
In early 2020, in response to COVID-19 quarantine home-schooling needs, Dictionary.com launched an interactive platform for learning at home, and an online tutoring service. Later that year Dictionary.com's sister site, Thesaurus.com, launched a writing assistant and grammar checker called Grammar Coach. The coronavirus outbreak led to the addition of novel words to the main dictionary (e.g., fomite) and the slang dictionary (e.g., rona).
See also
- Lexico
- Lists of dictionaries
References
- "Dictionary.com WHOIS, DNS, & Domain Info - DomainTools". whois.domaintools.com. Archived from the original on November 8, 2021. Retrieved June 16, 2016.
- Herman, Barbara (May 12, 2015). "Deep Web, Revenge Porn And Microaggression Are Just Some of Dictionary.com's Latest Additions". International Business Times. Archived from the original on April 8, 2022. Retrieved February 24, 2021.
- Treisman, Rachel (September 3, 2020). "Dictionary.com's Largest Update (Re)defines Thousands Of Words, Focusing On Identity". NPR. Archived from the original on April 25, 2022. Retrieved April 16, 2021.
- Perlman, Merrill (April 29, 2019). "Dictionaries recently added more than 1,500 words. Here are some new entries". Columbia Journalism Review. Archived from the original on April 25, 2022. Retrieved February 25, 2020.
- Learning, I. X. L. "IXL Learning Acquires Dictionary.com and Thesaurus.com". www.prnewswire.com. Retrieved April 2, 2024.
- Kramer, Staci D. (May 15, 2008). "Lexico, Dictionary.com Being Acquired By Ask.com; Price In $100 Million Range". Gigacom. Archived from the original on November 17, 2021. Retrieved January 24, 2014.
- Alpert, Lukas (March 26, 2018). "Defining Moment for Dictionary.com - It's For Sale". Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on April 8, 2022. Retrieved March 17, 2020.
- Auchard, Eric (July 4, 2008). "Ask.com closes acquisition of Dictionary.com". Reuters. Archived from the original on April 8, 2022. Retrieved October 14, 2019.
- "Amended and Restated Operating Agreement of Dictionary.com, LLC". U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. July 17, 2008. Archived from the original on October 6, 2021. Retrieved October 14, 2019.
- Reindl, JC (November 15, 2018). "Cleveland Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert just dipped into the online dictionary, thesaurus business". WKYC Studios.
- Stevens, Heidi (November 11, 2015). "'Mx.' instead of 'Mr.' or 'Mrs.?' It's in the dictionary now". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on April 8, 2022. Retrieved February 25, 2020.
- "Definition of emolument". dictionary.com. Archived from the original on April 8, 2022. Retrieved April 28, 2020.
- "15 crossword solvers for Android, iOS, and the web that actually work!". Android Authority. March 5, 2020. Archived from the original on April 8, 2022. Retrieved May 8, 2020.
- Steinmetz, Katy (February 12, 2020). "Terms Like 'OK Boomer' Are Hard to Define. This Dictionary Is Trying Anyway". Time. Retrieved May 8, 2020.
- Griggs, Brandon (December 15, 2018). "What Dictionary.com's words of the year say about us". CNN. Archived from the original on April 8, 2022. Retrieved December 19, 2019.
- ""Existential' crowned word of the year by Dictionary.com". Click on Detroit. Archived from the original on April 25, 2022. Retrieved December 19, 2019.
- "The Dictionary.com Word Of The Year For 2020 Is ..." Dictionary.com. November 30, 2020. Archived from the original on December 4, 2017. Retrieved January 24, 2021.
- "The Dictionary.com Word of the Year is hallucinate". Dictionary.com. December 12, 2023. Archived from the original on January 15, 2024. Retrieved January 15, 2024.
- Rao, Leena (April 8, 2009). "Dictionary.com Launches Free iPhone App". Tech Crunch. Archived from the original on April 8, 2022. Retrieved March 13, 2020.
- Lane, Ana (March 18, 2020). "41 totally free educational resources for kids stuck at home". USA TODAY. Archived from the original on April 8, 2022. Retrieved May 8, 2020.
- Magid, Anigah (October 28, 2020). "Dictionary.com Launches Tutoring and Learning Features to Combat Language Ambiguity and Learning Burnout in 2020". eLearningInside News. Archived from the original on November 1, 2020. Retrieved June 13, 2021.
- Camero, Katie (April 23, 2020). "Dictionary has been updated to cover COVID-19. These are the new words". Miami Herald. Archived from the original on October 6, 2021. Retrieved May 1, 2020.
External links
- Official website
Dictionary com is an online dictionary whose domain was first registered on May 14 1995 The primary content on Dictionary com is a proprietary dictionary based on Random House Unabridged Dictionary with editors for the site providing new and updated definitions Supplementary content comes from the Collins English Dictionary American Heritage Dictionary and others It is owned by IXL Learning Dictionary comType of siteDictionaryAvailable inEnglishOwnerIXL LearningCreated byBrian KarigerDaniel FierroURLwww wbr dictionary wbr comCommercialYesLaunchedMay 14 1995 29 years ago 1995 05 14 HistoryDictionary com was founded by Brian Kariger and Daniel Fierro as part of Lexico Publishing which also started Thesaurus com and Reference com At the time of its launch it was one of the web s first in depth reference sites In July 2008 Lexico Publishing Group LLC was acquired by Ask com an IAC company and renamed Dictionary com LLC In 2018 IAC sold Dictionary com and Thesaurus com to Rock Holdings At the time of the sale Dictionary com was the 447th most trafficked website in the United States according to the website tracking service SimilarWeb In 2015 they estimated that there are 5 5 billion word searches a year on its site In 2024 Rock Holdings sold Dictionary com and Thesaurus com to IXL Learning FeaturesAmong its features Dictionary com offers a Word of the Day a crossword solver and a pop culture dictionary that includes emoji and slang sections In 2010 Dictionary com began a Word of the Year feature with the word change The selection is based on search trends on the site throughout the year and the news events that drive them Dictionary com s words of the year have been 2010 change 2011 tergiversate 2012 bluster 2013 privacy 2014 exposure 2015 identity 2016 xenophobia 2017 complicit 2018 misinformation 2019 existential 2020 pandemic 2021 allyship 2022 woman 2023 hallucinate 2024 demure In April 2009 they launched an app on the Apple App Store allowing users to find definitions and synonyms It also included audio pronunciations alphabetical indexing and synonym example sentences Since then Dictionary com released a standalone thesaurus app called Thesaurus Rex along with education apps Dictionary com Flashcards Word Dynamo and Learning to Read with Zoo Animals In early 2020 in response to COVID 19 quarantine home schooling needs Dictionary com launched an interactive platform for learning at home and an online tutoring service Later that year Dictionary com s sister site Thesaurus com launched a writing assistant and grammar checker called Grammar Coach The coronavirus outbreak led to the addition of novel words to the main dictionary e g fomite and the slang dictionary e g rona See alsoLexico Lists of dictionariesReferences Dictionary com WHOIS DNS amp Domain Info DomainTools whois domaintools com Archived from the original on November 8 2021 Retrieved June 16 2016 Herman Barbara May 12 2015 Deep Web Revenge Porn And Microaggression Are Just Some of Dictionary com s Latest Additions International Business Times Archived from the original on April 8 2022 Retrieved February 24 2021 Treisman Rachel September 3 2020 Dictionary com s Largest Update Re defines Thousands Of Words Focusing On Identity NPR Archived from the original on April 25 2022 Retrieved April 16 2021 Perlman Merrill April 29 2019 Dictionaries recently added more than 1 500 words Here are some new entries Columbia Journalism Review Archived from the original on April 25 2022 Retrieved February 25 2020 Learning I X L IXL Learning Acquires Dictionary com and Thesaurus com www prnewswire com Retrieved April 2 2024 Kramer Staci D May 15 2008 Lexico Dictionary com Being Acquired By Ask com Price In 100 Million Range Gigacom Archived from the original on November 17 2021 Retrieved January 24 2014 Alpert Lukas March 26 2018 Defining Moment for Dictionary com It s For Sale Wall Street Journal Archived from the original on April 8 2022 Retrieved March 17 2020 Auchard Eric July 4 2008 Ask com closes acquisition of Dictionary com Reuters Archived from the original on April 8 2022 Retrieved October 14 2019 Amended and Restated Operating Agreement of Dictionary com LLC U S Securities and Exchange Commission July 17 2008 Archived from the original on October 6 2021 Retrieved October 14 2019 Reindl JC November 15 2018 Cleveland Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert just dipped into the online dictionary thesaurus business WKYC Studios Stevens Heidi November 11 2015 Mx instead of Mr or Mrs It s in the dictionary now Chicago Tribune Archived from the original on April 8 2022 Retrieved February 25 2020 Definition of emolument dictionary com Archived from the original on April 8 2022 Retrieved April 28 2020 15 crossword solvers for Android iOS and the web that actually work Android Authority March 5 2020 Archived from the original on April 8 2022 Retrieved May 8 2020 Steinmetz Katy February 12 2020 Terms Like OK Boomer Are Hard to Define This Dictionary Is Trying Anyway Time Retrieved May 8 2020 Griggs Brandon December 15 2018 What Dictionary com s words of the year say about us CNN Archived from the original on April 8 2022 Retrieved December 19 2019 Existential crowned word of the year by Dictionary com Click on Detroit Archived from the original on April 25 2022 Retrieved December 19 2019 The Dictionary com Word Of The Year For 2020 Is Dictionary com November 30 2020 Archived from the original on December 4 2017 Retrieved January 24 2021 The Dictionary com Word of the Year is hallucinate Dictionary com December 12 2023 Archived from the original on January 15 2024 Retrieved January 15 2024 Rao Leena April 8 2009 Dictionary com Launches Free iPhone App Tech Crunch Archived from the original on April 8 2022 Retrieved March 13 2020 Lane Ana March 18 2020 41 totally free educational resources for kids stuck at home USA TODAY Archived from the original on April 8 2022 Retrieved May 8 2020 Magid Anigah October 28 2020 Dictionary com Launches Tutoring and Learning Features to Combat Language Ambiguity and Learning Burnout in 2020 eLearningInside News Archived from the original on November 1 2020 Retrieved June 13 2021 Camero Katie April 23 2020 Dictionary has been updated to cover COVID 19 These are the new words Miami Herald Archived from the original on October 6 2021 Retrieved May 1 2020 External linksOfficial website
