Section 4.6. Word Definitions


4.6. Word Definitions

What with email, blogging, and online chat, the Internet has created a resurgence of written communication. With more typing, however, comes more room for embarrassing errors in spelling, grammar, and vocabulary.

The spell checkers built into many programs are handy, but they can't tell you whether you're using a word correctly or help you find the right word in the first place. If you need quick access to a dictionary or thesaurus while composing a memo, report, or letter, consider sites like these:

  • Dictionary.com . A dictionary that gathers definitions from other dictionaries and presents them all on the same page, Dictionary.com saves you a lot of thumbing through heavy, paper-based resources. Although peppered with advertisements, the site includes free guides to grammar, usage, and style (http://dictionary.reference.com).

  • Onelook.com . A search engine that specializes in finding words, OneLook (www.onelook.com) boasts five million different words in its index, collected from 900 different dictionaries around the Web. The site also features a Word of the Day. In a reverse lookup feature, you type in a description of something and OneLook tries to supply the word you're grasping for.

  • Thesaurus.com . If you want to avoid using the same words all the time, this site (http://thesaurus.reference.com) gives your vocabulary an instant boost. Like Roget's on steroids, Thesaurus.com brings back a whole screenful of alternatives.


Tip: If you want to improve your vocabulary while entertaining your eyes, try the Thinkmap Visual Thesaurus at www.visualthesaurus.com. When you look up a word, Visual Thesaurus displays synonyms or other terms commonly associated with the original word. Built-in audio files even pronounce the words for you. The site lets you explore 145,000 English terms (and 115,00 different meanings) for $3 a month or $20 a year.
UP TO SPEED
Getting Information from Uncle Sam

Wouldn't it be great if you could find all Federal facts, forms, and answers in one placewithout standing in line for hours under unflattering fluorescent lights?

You can. Just visit www.firstgov.gov, the U.S. Government's Official Web portal. At FirstGov, you can download a passport renewal form, apply for government jobs, get student aid, or even write a letter to your Congressperson.

In addition to links to all kinds of forms and Webbased services, FirstGov has its own reference center. There you can look up U.S. laws and read historical documents (in case you wake up at 3 a.m. wondering what the Articles of Confederation have to say). There's also a section of data and statistics with current census results, crime rates, and other surveys of American life.

You can also browse official government photo collections. Hankering for some new desktop wallpaper? How about an Air Force fighter jet, perhaps, or an undersea scene from the Smithsonian?





The Internet. The Missing Manual
iPhone: The Missing Manual, 4th Edition
ISBN: 1449393659
EAN: 2147483647
Year: 2006
Pages: 147
Authors: David Pogue

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