• The 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 Compact Edition of the OED reproduces micrographically, in a single volume, the complete text of the highly acclaimed Second Edition of The Oxford English Dictionary. In this edition, nine pages of the original fit onto just one. This volume comes in a slipcase with a magnifying glass and a new user's guide which explains the conventions of the OED.
 
 

Reviews of the Second Edition of The Oxford English Dictionary:

"The gigantic total picture of the English language...an epic achievement." Anthony Burgess, Observer"

"A stupendous achievement." - William Golding, Evening Standard

"The greatest reference book ever written." - Stephen Jay Gould, Nature

"A national treasure." - New Statesman & Society