The Cambridge Thesaurus of American English

Description

This is a major new thesaurus, carefully designed and easy-to-use, which contains an original and up-to-date collection in A-Z format of over 200,000 synonyms and antonyms. It has been compiled by William Lutz, author of Doublespeak and a renowned expert on language use. Instead of indiscriminately listing every word associated with the headword, as many other thesauruses do, The Cambridge Thesaurus selects those that are synonyms or near synonyms in the widest range of contexts, labelling any that are slang or otherwise restricted in usage. Synonyms are listed according to their commonness and appropriateness, as are antonyms, and are distinguished by sense. In those cases where the distinction between senses in not clear, a brief definition is provided. Special attention has been given to phrasal entries such as come out (transpire), fall apart (collapse), look down on (disparage). The Cambridge Thesaurus of American English will be welcomed by both students of language and general readers interested in, or coming into contact with, American English.

"...a welcome addition to the list of modern thesauruses and highly recommended for users who need a concise work that provides quick and easy access." Library Journal "At last--a current thesaurus of American English that is both easy to use and appropriate for all levels...this work combines the more accessible dictionary arrangement with a clean typeface and uncluttered pages. The result is an excellent tool for quick reference...Highly recommended for all libraries." P.S. Thomas, Choice "This is a good, concise thesaurus for the general reader, a ready-reference or telephone-reference service point, or an office. Given the price, it might even be a good circulating thesaurus since it is much more legible than the paperbound ones most libraries use. A useful purchase." Booklist "Concise, easy to use, and presented in exceedingly readable type, the Cambridge Thesaurus is an original and up-to-date collection of some 200,000 synonyms and antonyms for the most commonly used words and phrases in contemporary American English." Book News, Inc. "...a fine, practical reference...updated for modern audiences...an important and valuable reference which promises to educate new audiences with an easy-to-use format. Highly recommended." The Midwest Book Review "Accessible to middle school students, but better for high school and the general adult public, it's a good, quick, albeit limited, source of synonyms." School Library Journal "...libraries will find it a useful alternative to offer students and writers." American Reference Books Annual "...this thesaurus stresses a careful selection of synonyms over the undifferentiated paragraphs of words, as typified by Peter Roget's original...may better limit the phenomenon of 'thesauritis' found in naive writing...a dependable and easy-to-use book with a pleasant, readable lay-out...proper for any library." Vivian Zenari, Feliciter