On OUPblog, the official blog of Oxford University Press, sociolinguist Alexandra D'Arcy has kicked off a new column by penning an ode to her grandmother, "a firm advocate of correctness" who "in the proud tradition of language purists... found anything other than 'the standard' objectionable."
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Vocabulary Resources
- Visual Thesaurus
- An interactive dictionary and thesaurus that leads you to discover the connections between vocabulary words in a visually captivating display. Word maps blossom with meaning, encouraging exploration instead of rote memorization to expand vocabulary.
- Vocabulary University
- Looking for the previous version of this website? Visit www.vocabularyuniversity.com.
- Cambridge Dictionaries Online
- Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary and other excellent learner dictionaries are available online, free of charge.
- Online Etymological Dictionary
- A free and open resource for reliable information on word roots.
- Vintage Vocabulary
- A site highlighting American words and expressions with intriguing origins.
- UsingEnglish
- Designed for ESL learners, UsingEnglish contains an extensive list of English idioms.
- Academic Word List (AWL)
- Developed by linguistics professor Averil Coxhead, AWL contains frequently occurring English vocabulary words from a broad range of academic texts.
Tools and Tips for Teachers:
- ReadWriteThink
- A collaboration between NCTE and IRA, ReadWriteThink has a searchable lesson plan archive that features many lessons with a focus on vocabulary learning.
- Education Oasis
- Graphic organizers for teachers that can help students learn new vocabulary words and concepts.
- Literacy Matters
- A project from the Education Development Center with valuable resources for enriching vocabulary instruction as a means to improve content literacy.
- Cuesta College Guide to Vocabulary
- An overview of helpful vocabulary strategies that include interpreting context clues, recognizing word roots, and analyzing common relationships between words.
Featured Vocabulary Lists
Academic Vocabularymore »
- asexual reproduction
- asteroid
- atmosphere
- atmospheric pressure
- atom
- acronym
- allegory
- alliteration
- allusion
- ambience
- a cappella
- aesthetics
- agility
- angle
- archetype
Current Events Vocabularymore »
- schoolwork
- foster home
- homework
- extracurricular activity
- homelessness
- mortgage-backed security
- stock market
- penny stock
- homeowner
- refinance
- swine flu
- pandemic
- severe acute respiratory syndrome
- lethality
- virus
Fiction Vocabularymore »
Lois Lowry's "The Giver" Chapter 1 »(99 words)
Vocabulary study list for Lois Lowry's "The Giver"...
- childcare
- nightclothes
- family unit
- overfly
- street cleaner
- leftovers
- crumple
- swathe
- snooze
- gullible
Harper Lee's "To Kill a Mockingbird" Chapters 1-10 »(164 words)
Vocabulary study list for Harper Lee's "To Kill a...
- nauseate
- asinine
- delete
- douse
- crumple
Non-Fiction Vocabularymore »
Anne Frank's "Diary of a Young Girl" Part 1 »(173 words)
Vocabulary study list for Anne Frank's "Diary of a...
- immigrate
- moodiness
- wangle
- faze
- collapsible
Virginia Woolf's "A Room of One's Own" »(343 words)
Vocabulary study list for Virginia Woolf's "A Room of...
- truncate
- hortatory
- misogynist
- intensification
- avuncular
"Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass" »(234 words)
Vocabulary study list for "Narrative of the Life of...
- pharisaical
- execrate
- exculpate
- transferable
- imbue
Vocabulary Word of The Day
Tuesday, February 9th
Smooth-Talking Word of the Day:
blandishment
It seems odd that a word denoting one of the chief lubricants of civilization should be relatively infrequent, but there it is: blandishment is the art of persuasion via flattery, or a statement that attempts this. The ultimate root is Latin blandus, "bland, smooth."
Vocabulary Tools
VocabGrabber
Automatically create lists of vocabulary from any text using VocabGrabber.
Try it now! Spelling Bee Think you are a good speller? Play the Visual Thesaurus Spelling Bee and find out! Click here to start.
Try it now! Spelling Bee Think you are a good speller? Play the Visual Thesaurus Spelling Bee and find out! Click here to start.
Words on Words
Word Routes
Exploring the pathways of our lexicon
The Legend of Cary Grant's Telegram 
February 4, 2010
By Ben Zimmer
A witty telegram that might be too witty to be true.
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Word Routes
Exploring the pathways of our lexicon
Crash Blossoms Keep on Blossoming
February 2, 2010
By Ben Zimmer
The joy of "crash blossoms" (unintentionally ambiguous headlines).
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Spelling whiz Tony Incorvati of Canton Country Day School shares some of his favorite words.
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Wunderkind
A column for scrappy students
Spelling Whiz, Part Two: Tony Incorvati of Canton Country Day
January 27, 2010
We talk to seventh-grader Tony Incorvati about his experiences competing in the Scripps National Spelling Bee.
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Lesson Plans
Lesson Plans
Put vocabulary to work in your classroom
Salinger and the Vocabulary of the Vernacular
February 5, 2010
How can students map the meanings of some of Holden Caulfield's slang words and expressions?
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Lesson Plans
Put vocabulary to work in your classroom
A Victorian Vocabulary Challenge
January 4, 2010
How can students use the Visual Thesaurus to help them complete a challenging Victorian sentence completion exercise?
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Lesson Plans
Put vocabulary to work in your classroom
Vocabulary Bursting with Energy
November 11, 2009
How can students use the Visual Thesaurus to review key vocabulary associated with the sources and properties of energy?
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