About the Unabridged | Merriam-Webster Unabridged

<!DOCTYPE html> <html lang="en" class="wf-loading"> <head> <meta http-equiv="X-UA-Compatible" content="IE=edge,chrome=1"> <meta charset="utf-8"> <title>About the Unabridged | Merriam-Webster Unabridged</title> <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width,initial-scale=1.0"> <meta name="description" content="The Unabridged dictionary is an ongoing project to create and maintain the most comprehensive American English dictionary. Browse words, use our powerful advanced search, and utilize our citations database for all of your language needs."> <link rel="canonical" href="https://unabridged.merriam-webster.com/info/about-the-unabridged.html" /> <meta name="author" content="Merriam-Webster, Incorporated"> <link rel="stylesheet" href="/dist/css/style-core.css" media="screen"> <script defer src="/dist/js/js-core-ea822fced09862e9588f.bundle.js"></script> <script>(()=>{"use strict";var e={2212:(e,t,r)=>{r.d(t,{A:()=>n}),(e=r.hmd(e)).init=function(){window.sentryOnLoad=function(){console.log("sentryOnLoad enter");var e={dsn:"https://321761efffed4a78a6a7bdab0fe68d8b@bug-reporting-xalgha6.m-w.com/4",sampleRate:"production"===window.mwdata.env?.01:1,tracesSampleRate:"production"===window.mwdata.env?.01:1,environment:window.mwdata.env,replaysSessionSampleRate:0,replaysOnErrorSampleRate:0};Sentry.init(e)}};const n=e}},t={};function r(n){var o=t[n];if(void 0!==o)return o.exports;var a=t[n]={id:n,loaded:!1,exports:{}};return e[n](a,a.exports,r),a.loaded=!0,a.exports}r.d=(e,t)=>{for(var n in t)r.o(t,n)&&!r.o(e,n)&&Object.defineProperty(e,n,{enumerable:!0,get:t[n]})},r.hmd=e=>((e=Object.create(e)).children||(e.children=[]),Object.defineProperty(e,"exports",{enumerable:!0,set:()=>{throw new Error("ES Modules may not assign module.exports or exports.*, Use ESM export syntax, instead: "+e.id)}}),e),r.o=(e,t)=>Object.prototype.hasOwnProperty.call(e,t),r(2212).A.init()})();</script><script>!function(n,e,r,t,o,i,a,c,s){for(var u=s,f=0;f<document.scripts.length;f++)if(document.scripts[f].src.indexOf(i)>-1){u&&"no"===document.scripts[f].getAttribute("data-lazy")&&(u=!1);break}var p=[];function l(n){return"e"in n}function d(n){return"p"in n}function _(n){return"f"in n}var v=[];function y(n){u&&(l(n)||d(n)||_(n)&&n.f.indexOf("capture")>-1||_(n)&&n.f.indexOf("showReportDialog")>-1)&&L(),v.push(n)}function h(){y({e:[].slice.call(arguments)})}function g(n){y({p:n})}function E(){try{n.SENTRY_SDK_SOURCE="loader";var e=n[o],i=e.init;e.init=function(o){n.removeEventListener(r,h),n.removeEventListener(t,g);var a=c;for(var s in o)Object.prototype.hasOwnProperty.call(o,s)&&(a[s]=o[s]);!function(n,e){var r=n.integrations||[];if(!Array.isArray(r))return;var t=r.map((function(n){return n.name}));n.tracesSampleRate&&-1===t.indexOf("BrowserTracing")&&(e.browserTracingIntegration?r.push(e.browserTracingIntegration({enableInp:!0})):e.BrowserTracing&&r.push(new e.BrowserTracing));(n.replaysSessionSampleRate||n.replaysOnErrorSampleRate)&&-1===t.indexOf("Replay")&&(e.replayIntegration?r.push(e.replayIntegration()):e.Replay&&r.push(new e.Replay));n.integrations=r}(a,e),i(a)},setTimeout((function(){return function(e){try{"function"==typeof n.sentryOnLoad&&(n.sentryOnLoad(),n.sentryOnLoad=void 0)}catch(n){console.error("Error while calling `sentryOnLoad` handler:"),console.error(n)}try{for(var r=0;r<p.length;r++)"function"==typeof p[r]&&p[r]();p.splice(0);for(r=0;r<v.length;r++){_(i=v[r])&&"init"===i.f&&e.init.apply(e,i.a)}m()||e.init();var t=n.onerror,o=n.onunhandledrejection;for(r=0;r<v.length;r++){var i;if(_(i=v[r])){if("init"===i.f)continue;e[i.f].apply(e,i.a)}else l(i)&&t?t.apply(n,i.e):d(i)&&o&&o.apply(n,[i.p])}}catch(n){console.error(n)}}(e)}))}catch(n){console.error(n)}}var O=!1;function L(){if(!O){O=!0;var n=e.scripts[0],r=e.createElement("script");r.src=a,r.crossOrigin="anonymous",r.addEventListener("load",E,{once:!0,passive:!0}),n.parentNode.insertBefore(r,n)}}function m(){var e=n.__SENTRY__,r=void 0!==e&&e.version;return r?!!e[r]:!(void 0===e||!e.hub||!e.hub.getClient())}n[o]=n[o]||{},n[o].onLoad=function(n){m()?n():p.push(n)},n[o].forceLoad=function(){setTimeout((function(){L()}))},["init","addBreadcrumb","captureMessage","captureException","captureEvent","configureScope","withScope","showReportDialog"].forEach((function(e){n[o][e]=function(){y({f:e,a:arguments})}})),n.addEventListener(r,h),n.addEventListener(t,g),u||setTimeout((function(){L()}))}(window,document,"error","unhandledrejection","Sentry",'321761efffed4a78a6a7bdab0fe68d8b','https://browser.sentry-cdn.com/8.55.0/bundle.tracing.replay.min.js',{"dsn":"321761efffed4a78a6a7bdab0fe68d8b@bug-reporting-xalgha6.m-w.com/4","tracesSampleRate":1,"replaysSessionSampleRate":0.1,"replaysOnErrorSampleRate":1},false);</script> <script>(function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start': new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0], j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src= 'https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f); })(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-PVQ8QJPW');</script> <link rel="stylesheet" href="/dist/css/style-print-definition.css" media="print"> <link rel="shortcut icon" href="/favicon.ico"> <link rel="apple-touch-icon-precomposed" sizes="144x144" href="/images/ico/apple-touch-icon-144-precomposed.png"> <link rel="apple-touch-icon-precomposed" sizes="114x114" href="/images/ico/apple-touch-icon-114-precomposed.png"> <link rel="apple-touch-icon-precomposed" sizes="72x72" href="/images/ico/apple-touch-icon-72-precomposed.png"> <link rel="apple-touch-icon-precomposed" href="/images/ico/apple-touch-icon-57-precomposed.png"> <script> const recaptchaEntScoreId = "6LcE9EMfAAAAABEvIUihKOE8ShqCm3TYm_MYU8m7"; const recaptchaEntActionName = "info"; </script> <script src="https://www.google.com/recaptcha/enterprise.js?render=6LcE9EMfAAAAABEvIUihKOE8ShqCm3TYm_MYU8m7"></script> <script> grecaptcha.enterprise.ready(function() { grecaptcha.enterprise.execute(recaptchaEntScoreId, {action: recaptchaEntActionName}).then(function(token) { //console.log('recaptcha executed. token = ', token, 'action =', recaptchaEntActionName); }); }); </script> <script> window.mwdata = {"CAMSERVICE_DOMAIN":"https:\/\/camservice.britannica.com","assetsDomain2":"https:\/\/merriam-webster.com\/assets","pronsDomain":"https:\/\/media.merriam-webster.com","env":"production","recaptchaEntScoreId":"6LcE9EMfAAAAABEvIUihKOE8ShqCm3TYm_MYU8m7","cam_redirect_back_override":""}; </script>   <script>window.ONETRUSTDOMAIN = "unabridged";</script> <script defer src="https://www.merriam-webster.com/assets/mw/static/shared/mw-shared/js/onetrust/onetrust-v2.min.js"></script>  <script type="text/javascript"> // Handles submit events on the search bar. function onSubmitSearch (form) { // Get user's query. let queryTerm = form.searchTerm.value.replace(/^\s+|\s+$/g, ''); // Get the type of query we're dealing with. let queryType = form.fieldToSearch.value; // Get the reference being queried. let queryReference = form.ref.value; // Set the corresponding input's value. form[queryType].value = queryTerm; // Invalid query type. if (queryType != "word" && queryReference != "unabridged") return false; // This is just a standard headword search. if (queryType == "word" && queryTerm.trim() != '') { document.location = "/" + queryReference + "/" + encodeURIComponent(queryTerm); return false; } // Submitting a blank search. if (queryType == "word" && queryTerm.trim() == '') { document.location = "/"; return false; } return true; } // Handles reference selection events on the search bar. function onSelectSearchReference (elem) { // Get the form input values. let form = $(elem).parents('form').get(0); let reference = form.ref.value; let fieldToSearch = form.fieldToSearch; // Set the field to search to "Main Entry" and disable the control. if (reference != "unabridged") { fieldToSearch.value = "word"; $(fieldToSearch).addClass("disabled"); $(fieldToSearch).prop("disabled", true); // Enable the fieldToSearch component. } else { $(fieldToSearch).removeClass("disabled"); $(fieldToSearch).prop("disabled", false); } // Set the placeholder text. $(form.searchTerm).attr("placeholder", "Search the " + elem.options[elem.selectedIndex].text); return false; } </script> </head> <body class="page-secondary page-engagement">  <noscript><iframe src="https://www.googletagmanager.com/ns.html?id=GTM-PVQ8QJPW" height="0" width="0" style="display:none;visibility:hidden"></iframe></noscript>   <header class="navbar w-100 no-print"> <nav class="container flex-wrap flex-lg-nowrap w-100"> <div class="navbar-inner w-100 p-0"> <div> <div class="navbar-row d-flex"> <div class="d-flex"> <div class="navbar-logo"> <a class="brand" href="/"> <span class="text">Merriam-Webster</span> <img src="/images/mw_on_dark.svg" class="svg" alt='Merriam-Webster logo for dark background'> </a> </div> <div class="header-brand"> <div class="header-subtitle d-md-block d-none">Britannica Digital Learning</div> <a class="header-link" href="/">Unabridged</a> </div> </div> <div class="d-flex align-items-end ms-auto"> <div class="d-none d-lg-block"> <ul class="nav-links-top mb-2"> <li> <img src="/images/white-arrow-15x10.png" class="nav-link-arrow" alt='right arrow icon'> <span class="nav-link-text">Welcome to the Unabridged!</span> </li> <li><a href="/info/about-the-unabridged.html" title="Learn More">Learn More</a></li> <li><a href="https://premium.britannica.com/mw-unabridged/?utm_source=mwu&utm_medium=global-nav&utm_campaign=evergreen" title="Subscription">Subscription</a></li> <li><a href="https://cam.merriam-webster.com/login" title="Log In">Log In</a></li> </ul> <ul class="nav-links-bottom d-flex justify-content-end"> <li data-id="advanced-search"><a href="/advanced-search.php">Advanced Search</a></li> <li data-id="word-of-the-day"><a href="/word-of-the-day/">Word of the Day</a></li> <li data-id="style-guide"><a href="/style-guide/">Style Guide</a></li> </ul> </div> <div class="nav-links-menu d-md-block d-lg-none"> <a class="btn btn-navbar" data-bs-toggle="collapse" data-bs-target="#mobile-sidebar-collapse-menu"> <svg width="24px" height="20px" viewBox="0 0 24 20" version="1.1" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"> <g id="Menu" stroke="none" stroke-width="1" fill="none" fill-rule="evenodd"> <rect class="menu-rec" fill="#ffffff" x="0" y="0" width="24" height="3" rx="1.5"></rect> <rect class="menu-rec" fill="#ffffff" x="0" y="16" width="24" height="3" rx="1.5"></rect> <rect class="menu-rec" fill="#ffffff" x="0" y="8" width="24" height="3" rx="1.5"></rect> </g> </svg> </a> </div> </div> </div> <div class="nav-links-collapse-menu collapse navbar-collapse navbar-nav" id="mobile-sidebar-collapse-menu"> <div class="list-group"> <div class="list-group-header">Account</div> <ul class="nav-links-group"> <li><a href="https://premium.britannica.com/mw-unabridged/?utm_source=mwu&utm_medium=global-nav&utm_campaign=evergreen" title="Subscription">Subscription</a></li> <li><a href="https://cam.merriam-webster.com/login" title="Log In">Log In</a></li> </ul> </div> <div class="list-group"> <div class="list-group-header">Sections</div> <ul class="nav-links-group"> <li data-id="advanced-search"><a href="/advanced-search.php">Advanced Search</a></li> <li data-id="word-of-the-day"><a href="/word-of-the-day/">Word of the Day</a></li> <li data-id="style-guide"><a href="/style-guide/">Style Guide</a></li> </ul> </div> <div class="list-group list-group-close"> <div class="close-button"> <a href="#" data-bs-toggle="collapse" data-bs-target="#mobile-sidebar-collapse-menu">[X] close</a> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </nav> </header>  <div id="main-content" class="container wrapper"> <div class="container"> <div class="page-container"> <div class="row clearfix">  <div class="page-content col-lg-8"> <div class="main-search-bar"> <form id="search-bar-form" action="/advanced-search"> <input name="word" type="hidden" value="" /> <input name="dt" type="hidden" value="" /> <input name="date" type="hidden" value="" /> <input name="ety" type="hidden" value="" /> <input name="usg" type="hidden" value="" /> <input name="vi" type="hidden" value="" /> <input name="author" type="hidden" value="" /> <input name="syn" type="hidden" value="" /> <input name="cryp" type="hidden" value="" /> <input name="jum" type="hidden" value="" /> <input name="searchType" type="hidden" value="standard" /> <input name="submit" type="hidden" value="True" /> <div class="search"> <div class="search-field-input"> <input id="search-term" name="searchTerm" type="text" spellcheck="false" autocapitalize="none" placeholder="Search the Unabridged Dictionary" value="" /> <button class="btn d-flex justify-content-center align-items-center" aria-label="search" > <svg width="18px" height="19px" viewBox="0 0 26 29" version="1.1" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"> <g class="Search" stroke="none" stroke-width="1" fill="none" fill-rule="evenodd"> <g class="g-search-icon" transform="translate(1.000000, 1.000000)" fill="#CA0403" fill-rule="nonzero"> <path d="M17.5185815,17.4073633 L24.5896493,24.4784311 C24.9801736,24.8689554 24.9801736,25.5021204 24.5896493,25.8926447 L23.1754357,27.3068582 C22.7849114,27.6973825 22.1517464,27.6973825 21.7612221,27.3068582 L14.6901543,20.2357904 C14.29963,19.8452661 14.29963,19.2121011 14.6901543,18.8215769 L16.1043679,17.4073633 C16.4948922,17.016839 17.1280572,17.016839 17.5185815,17.4073633 Z M10.5,21 C4.70101013,21 0,16.2989899 0,10.5 C0,4.70101013 4.70101013,0 10.5,0 C16.2989899,0 21,4.70101013 21,10.5 C21,16.2989899 16.2989899,21 10.5,21 Z M10.5,18 C14.6421356,18 18,14.6421356 18,10.5 C18,6.35786438 14.6421356,3 10.5,3 C6.35786438,3 3,6.35786438 3,10.5 C3,14.6421356 6.35786438,18 10.5,18 Z" class="Oval"></path> </g> </g> </svg> </button> </div> </div> <div class="row options"> <div class="col-6 col-sm-4 options-select options-select-ref"> <label for="ref">Reference</label> <select class="form-select form-select-sm" id="ref" name="ref" onchange="return onSelectSearchReference(this);"> <option selected="selected" value="unabridged">Unabridged Dictionary</option> <option value="collegiate">Collegiate Dictionary</option> <option value="thesaurus">Collegiate Thesaurus</option> <option value="medical">Medical Dictionary</option> </select> </div> <div class="col-6 col-sm-4 options-select options-select-ct"> <label for="fieldToSearch">Content Type</label> <select class="form-select form-select-sm" id="fieldToSearch" name="fieldToSearch" > <option value="word" >Main Entry</option> <option value="dt" >Definition</option> <option value="date" >Date</option> <option value="ety" >Etymology</option> <option value="usg" >Usage</option> <option value="vi" >Examples</option> <option value="author" >Author Quoted</option> <option value="syn" >Synonym Paragraph</option> <option value="cryp" >Cryptogram</option> <option value="jum" >Anagram</option> </select> </div> <div class="col-xs-12 col-sm-4 additional-search-options-wrapper"> <div class="additional-search-options"> <a href="/advanced-search.php">Advanced Search</a> » </div> </div> </div> </form> </div>  <div class="well content-body">  <div class="page-head"> <h1>About the Unabridged</h1> <div class="page-intro-none"> </div> </div>   <div class="section"> <div class="section-content"> <p>For nearly 200 years, in print and online, Merriam-Webster has been American's leading and most-trusted provider of language information.</p> <p>Each month, our collection of websites offer guidance to over 54 million visitors. In print, our publications include <em>Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary</em> (among the best-selling books in American history), leveled dictionaries for students, and bilingual and monolingual dictionaries for English Language Learners.</p> <p><em>Merriam-Webster Unabridged</em> is the largest, richest dictionary of American English. It is built on the solid foundation of <em>Webster's Third New International Dictionary, Unabridged</em>, and our online version includes: <ul> <li>Clear, authoritative definitions</li> <li>Quotations from both spoken and written English from Shakespeare to Lady Gaga</li> <li>Over 158,000 etymologies</li> <li>Supplementary notes with additional content</li> <li>Usage paragraphs offering clear guidance and suggestions for words with confused or disputed usage</li> <li>Browse entries by letter</li> </ul> </p> <p>Advanced search options make it easy to search for specific dictionary content beyond the headword, including reverse searching, searching for specific dictionary content (etymologies, usage, etc.), combined fields searching, wildcard search, and more. Users can also search the <em>Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary and Thesaurus</em> and <em>Merriam-Webster Medical Dictionary</em> within the Unabridged. And our Browse feature enables you to look through dictionary entries in order, providing the serendipity of discovery.</p> <p>Your own recent lookups are captured for easy reference, and subscribers also have access to our <em>Merriam-Webster Style Guide</em>.</p> <br/> <p>All Merriam-Webster products and services are backed by the largest team of professional lexicographers in America, and one of the largest in the world.</p> </div> </div>  </div> </div>  <div class="sidebar col-lg-4"> <div class="sidebar-inner"> <div class="section wod-sidebar" data-id="word-of-the-day"> <h2>Word of the Day</h2> <div class="section-content"> <div class="date">February 18, 2025</div> <dl class="word-of-the-day"> <dt><a href="/word-of-the-day/" class="word-of-the-day">chutzpah</a> <span class="pronounce"> <div class="play-pron btn" data-lang="en_us" data-dir="c" data-file="chutzp01" title="Listen to the pronunciation of chutzpah"> <i class="icon-pronounce"></i> <span class="text">(audio pronunciation)</span> </div> </span> </dt> <dd> brazen boldness often paired with reckless self-confidence <a href="/word-of-the-day/" class="more">more »</a> </dd> </dl> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div>   <div id="main-footer" class="container wrapper footer-oa"> <div class="container"> <div class="row clearfix"> <div class="col-md-12 column"> <section id="navbar-footer" class="row clearfix"> <div class="col-md-3 column"> <div class="panel panel-default"> <div class="panel-heading"> <h3 class="panel-title mb-0">About Merriam-Webster</h3> </div> <div class="panel-body"> <ul class="list-unstyled"> <li><a href="/" title="Home">Home</a></li> <li><a href="/info/about-the-unabridged.html" title="About the Unabridged">About the Unabridged</a></li> <li><a href="/info/site-help.html" title="Help">Help</a></li><li><a href="/info/about.html" title="Help">About Us</a></li> <li><a href="https://merriamwebster.freshdesk.com/support/home">Contact Us</a></li> <li><a href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/info/privacy-policy">Privacy Policy</a></li> <li><a href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/i/terms-of-use">Terms of Use</a></li> </ul> </div> </div> </div> <div class="col-md-3 column"> <div class="panel panel-default"> <div class="panel-heading"> <h3 class="panel-title mb-0">Account</h3> </div> <div class="panel-body"> <div class="section"> <ul class="list-unstyled"> <li><a href="/subscriber/billing" title="My Account">My Account</a></li> <li><a href="https://cam.merriam-webster.com/login" title="Log In">Log In</a></li> <li><a href="https://premium.britannica.com/mw-unabridged/?utm_source=mwu&utm_medium=footer&utm_campaign=evergreen" title="Subscription">Subscription</a></li> <li><a href="https://cam.merriam-webster.com/forgot-password" title="Password Recovery">Password Recovery</a></li> </ul> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="col-md-6 column"> <div class="panel panel-default"> <div class="panel-heading"> <h3 class="panel-title mb-0">Sections</h3> </div> <div class="panel-body"> <div class="row clearfix"> <div class="col-md-6 column"> <div class="section"> <ul class="list-unstyled"> <li><a href="/advanced-search.php" title="Advanced Search">Advanced Search</a></li> <li><a href="/word-of-the-day/" title="Word of the Day">Word of the Day</a></li> <li><a href="/style-guide/" title="Style Guide">Style Guide</a></li> </ul> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </section> <section id="copyright" class="row clearfix"> <div class="col-md-12 column"> <p><a href="/info/copyright.html">漏 2025 Merriam-Webster, Incorporated. All rights reserved.</a></p> </div> </section> </div> </div> </div> </div>  </body> </html>

CINXE.COM

About the Unabridged | Merriam-Webster Unabridged