Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary & Thesaurus

Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary & Thesaurus is a software application which enables you to find definitions for a myriad of words, regardless of the domain they come from.

The interface is simple and intuitive, allowing any type of individual to work with it, even those with little to no experience with the world of IT. The main window is split into two sections, one lets you configure the search, while the other enables you to see definitions, phonetic transcriptions, function and approximate date of the word, as well as listen to the correct pronunciation.

It is possible to switch between two very important references, namely the Merriam-Webster’s 11th Collegiate Dictionary and Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Thesaurus. While the first lets you to view the options described above, the latter enables you look up synonyms, related or contrasted words, idioms and antonyms.

This utility incorporates a spelling help and different types of searches. It is possible to look for words, function labels, thesaurus word lists and verbal illustrations. In addition to that, there is a basic scan and an advanced one. The first one searches for a keyword, and the latter also lets you input rules (and, or, not).

You can go to the previous or next entry, access a history list, as well as add bookmarks and organize them in folders, such as favorites or vocabulary words.

To conclude, Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary & Thesaurus is a useful piece of software which helps you find words and spellings, with a good response time and minimal usage of CPU and RAM.