Wordbook English Dictionary & Thesaurus- As someone who writes for a living, I’m totally biased about dictionaries, thesauruses, synonym finders and the like. These are the reference tools of my trade and I’m as picky about which one to use as a soon-to-be bride in a bridal shop.
Most of the time, I’ll go to one of my favorite Web sites to find out what I need to know. However, there are also times away from my desktop when I’m at a loss for words like when I’m cheating at Scrabble or talking smack at Hooligan’s, my local tavern.
That’s when I reach for Wordbook English Dictionary & Thesaurus from TranCreative Software.
I’ve checked out a number of dictionaries in the App Store (and there are many) and none measure up to WordBook. (Well, Webster’s Third New International Dictionary, which one reviewer called the “sine qua non of handheld dictionaries,” might, but I’m not willing to pay $59.99 to find out.)
WordBook comprises 150,000 entries with more than 220,000, 330,000 word links and 70,000 examples. All that would fill a 1,800-page book, but we’ll have to take TranCreative’s word for it.
No surpise, with it’s iPhone-user-friendly functionality, this dictionary is easier by far to use than the hard copy version.
You have the option to finger flip through a list of words or enter them into a search bar (it’s predictive, so you don’t actually have to type out the entire word). You also can use wildcards such as * and ? for input.
Once you get to the word you’re looking for, tap it, and a page with a definition and synonyms pops up. If you’re looking for the mot juste (the right word) as some French literary giants used to say, tap a synonym and off you go to a related noun, verb or another part of speech.
The app automatically maintains a history of words you’ve looked at; and if you choose, you can save words as favorites. Double tapping white space on the definition screen sends you to another page where you can add and delete favorites and history entries and link to Google and other sites for additional information. Finger flip the corner of the Web page to go back to the definition screen.
Use iPhone’s built-in Settings to create up to five URLs, change text size and other functions.
Last, there’s a puzzle word finder for crosswords and anagram, and featured words of the day to challenge your vocab. Shake the iPhone and the words change.
This dictionary is splendid, superb and sublime.