What's the best dictionary?

This is surely an excellent and important question. I expect that what you're looking for doesn't exist.
Or at least if it does exist it would comprise several volumes, or require a special, dedicated table to support it.
Recent experience has shown that most give only passing mention to obsolete uses, if they give any at all. If you intend to study old literature in depth, you really n

The most comprehensive dictionary for English is the Oxford English Dictionary. It is the oldest continuously published dictionary of the language.

The printed unabridged edition is about 20 large volumes, covering more than 500,000 words. It is global (dialects from different English-speacking countries), historical (etymology and morphology going back to the roots of words), and curre

Thanks, A/S.

I'm definitely not an expert in the qualities of various dictionaries. I use The American Heritage of the English Language. It is very user-friendly, with many references to history, acceptability, use, special cases, etc., of the entries. Obviously, it is no match for the Oxford, but it is rare that I do not find the answer to any question I might have about a word.

Hi Philip,
The American Heritage is the one I have at my elbow, but it let me down on "uncomprehensive," a word one of our posters inquired about. It turned up in a dictionary published at the turn of the last century.
The originator of this thread, Coloraday, is now reading older books, as wholegrainonce was. Very challenging.

Thanks for answers.I think the Oxford is the best one.But i think it too expensive for me.