✨📕 The NEW Collegiate Dictionary, 12th Edition Over 5,000 words added — Learn More!
✨📕 The NEW Collegiate Dictionary — Learn More!
play videos pictures in the dictionary
Up Next
Title
CANCEL
videos pictures in the dictionary
Words Matter

Pictures in the Dictionary

The story of those iconic illustrations.

The story of those iconic illustrations.

Up next

play videos pictures in the dictionary
Pictures in the Dictionary

 

The story of those iconic illustrations.

play alright allright video
Alright vs. All Right

 

Is 'alright' all right?

play hot mess
Hot Mess

 

Our research turned up two archaic literal meanings

play video how a word gets into the dicionary
How a Word Gets into the Dictionary

 

What our editors are looking for when they enter words in Merriam-Webster.

play video ghost words
How a Ghost Word Appeared in the Dictionary

 

An imaginary word that snuck into the dictionary

play serial comma
The Serial Comma Explained

 

Why don't they call it the Merriam-Webster comma?

play emily-brewster-with-the-words-effect-affect-on-screen
How to Remember 'Affect' and 'Effect'

 

A simple way to keep them apart. (Most of the time.)

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
thank-you-different-languages
Dutch, Yiddish, Japanese, or Hindi? Quiz Guess the language these English words come from.
See All