• The 20 volume Oxford English Dictionary is an unrivalled guide to the meaning, history, and pronunciation of over half a million words
• The Dictionary traces the evolution of over 600,000 words from across the English-speaking world through 2.4 million quotations
• Historical in focus, each of the OED 's entries contain the word's earliest known use, as well as later examples which help plot the word's subsequent development in English
• Its quotations are taken from a broad range of English language sources - from classic literature and specialist periodicals to film scripts and cookery books
• Elegantly designed for maximum legibility and printed to the highest standards on the finest quality paper

 
The 20-volume Oxford English Dictionary is the accepted authority on the evolution of the English language over the last millennium. It traces the usage of words through 2.4 million quotations from a wide range of international English language sources.

The OED has a unique historical focus. Accompanying each definition is a chronologically arranged group of quotations that trace the usage of words, and show the contexts in which they can be used. The quotations are drawn from a huge variety of sources worldwide - literary, scholarly, technical, and popular - and represent authors as disparate as Geoffrey Chaucer and Erica Jong, William Shakespeare, Charles Darwin and Isabella Beeton.

Other features distinguishing the entries in the Dictionary are authoritative definitions; detailed information on pronunciation using the International Phonetic Alphabet; listings of variant spellings used throughout each word's history; extensive treatment of etymology; and details of area of usage and of any regional characteristics.

Alongside the print edition is the Oxford English Dictionary Online (www.oed.com). Updated quarterly, this award-winning online resource allows the Dictionary to evolve with the English language while the print edition remains as a historical record. Subscriptions are available to OED online on an individual or institutional basis. Visit www.oup.com/online/oed/ for details.