CDAE provides definitions for about 40,000 words and is compiled to offer what learners need most in a dictionary.

Easy access

The ability to find what they are looking for quickly and easily

Clear definitions

Explanations that can be immediately understood

Plenty of examples

Sentences taken from speech and writing that show how words are used

Current vocabulary

Words and phrases that are used in school, business, technology, the arts, and everyday life in the 21st century

Key features of the program include:

• Based on a 200 million-word corpus of American English that shows which words and phrases are really used in current American English, and what people really mean when they say or write those words
• Organized by meaning to help learners use English effectively
• Guidewords to help you quickly find the exact meaning you are looking for
• A 2,000-word defining vocabulary to help make definitions easy to understand
• Authentic, full-sentence examples to show how words are typically used and to help learners understand and use English more accurately
• Language Portraits to provide in-depth explanations of difficult grammar, vocabulary, spelling, and punctuation
• More than 40,000 definitions of frequently used words and phrases from business, school, technology, the arts, and everyday life