Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with thesaurus

Chocolate is my ... weakness?

simplethings — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 08:57:41 -0800

A friend and I are looking for a certain word... it would be related to loving something so much it makes you go weak. Both of us believe there's a word for this but we can't quite put our finger on it. It could possibly be used in this context: "Chocolate is my _____." The closest word we can come up with is: weakness.
But we're pretty sure there's another.
We've already crossed these off the list:
Kryptonite
Achilles Heel
Passion
Addiction
Lover

There's a possibility that the word actually isn't a noun. It might go along the lines of: swoon.

Controlled vocabularies for photos

pahool — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 21:33:50 -0800

I'm looking for controlled vocabularies to describe photographic images. I need to do a comparison of several different ones for a library science class in vocabulary building. I've already taken a look at the Thesaurus for Graphic Materials and The Controlled Vocabulary Keyword Catalog and I'm looking for a few more. They can be print or electronic resources and they don't need any particular type of formatting or compatibility. Anyone have any experience with controlled vocabularies for describing photographic images or any suggestions?

Thesaurus word like "homage to"

jchinique — Mon, 23 Feb 2009 17:38:58 -0800

Single word that means "to sing the praises of", poss. Greek or Roman in origin. Thinking paean, or ode but not quite. Actual intended use: after writing several phrases in the style of a particular author saying "(this is going to start sounding like a paean to Mr So-and-So soon)."

Exhausted thesaurus options.

If I could remember its title, I wouldn't be posting

DarlingBri — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 22:32:44 -0800

[LostWebsiteFilter] Do you remember the thesaurus-like site that suggested words related to your keyword in a beautiful, branching, interactive graph? I used to have, buried somewhere in my bookmarks, a link to a site that was like the Baby Name Exporer, but for words.

You typed in your word, and it suggested related words in a branching diagram. You could then click any suggested word and get a tree for that, too.

It was definately flash driven, very visually appealing, and sort of a cross between a thesaurus and the Baby Name Explorer. It was great for brand brainstorming, which is what I need it for.

Can anyone provide a link?

make bigger dictionary/thesaurus in Word

cogneuro — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 08:01:43 -0800

Simple q: a way to supplement the dictionary/thesaurus in, ugh, MS Word, Macintosh, to extend its vocabulary and synonym choices? I don't want to have to pop out of word to go look elsewhere. I just want the built in dictionary/thesaurus enlarged. I know there have been N previous queries about dictionaries but I didn't see anything about this specific issue. thanks.

The best in ESL dictionaries / thesauri

Paragon — Mon, 19 Jan 2009 17:28:01 -0800

What is the best advanced learner's dictionary? Best advanced learner's thesaurus? I'm looking for recommendations for advanced learner's dictionaries and thesauri, aimed at university-level ESL students (here that means IELTS 6.0+ or TOEFL 550+).

I'm aware of Cambridge online, and have copies of the Collins and Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionaries, but have no idea about the most effective learner's thesauri: Oxford, Chambers, something else?

Personal experiences from ESL teachers or learners most welcome.

Desirous of grandiloquent wordsmithery

iivix — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 15:27:25 -0800

Can anyone point me in the direction of a grandiloquent thesaurus? Basically, I want to find overblown, unusual, pretentious, archaic, obscure, and intimidating words. Now I've found The Grandiloquent Dictionary some use in this regard, as are the two volumes of Foyle's Philavery. But, entertaining as these are, the problem is that both of these are dictionaries, i.e. lists of words in alphabetical order followed by definitions. So if I know the definition I want but not the word, it's no use. What I really want to do is look up a word by synonym (or even better - by description of the underlying concept, like in a reverse dictionary), and be presented with the most grandiloquent word to use...

Anyone know if such a thing exists, online or off?

Synecdoche of a paradigm distortion mumble mumble device

carbide — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 14:09:45 -0800

I need a human thesaurus. Looking for a word that means examining an aspect of something as a method of examining/reflecting on the whole. This is driving me nuts. I'm trying to write a project description, and cannot find the right word. I know I've run across a term for it before but I've been mulling it over since this morning without success.

I can't get into specifics because it's for work (but do MeMail me if it's vital), but it would be like looking at a neighbourhood's approach to social interaction by examining the use of front gardens.

It's a deliberate device and the examined aspect isn't in itself a representation of the whole, more a way of turning the conventional perspective around through this constructed way of looking. 'Lens' is currently the most useful approximation. An implication of manipulation is ok, a primary meaning of deception is not.

(Words from any context, whether scientific or dramatic or literary criticism, would be fine. The actual context is art, architecture and urban form.)

Rejected words:
- paradigm: the examined things may be typical aspects, and the 'paradigm shift' concept shows up elsewhere, but I think the widely understood meanings make it unhelpful
- sample: in the statistical sense, and too related to the thing being a microcosm of the whole
- microcosm: ditto
- synecdoche: ditto
- macguffin: the idea of using an anything as the device relates, but the anythings are relevant to the whole. also, not everyone using the document is as detectived-up as i am, but that wouldn't put me off if it were perfect.
- device: definitely part of a written-out definition if I can't find better, but not the word in itself.

Oracle Text (CTX) - Front end for thesaurus queries

NailsTheCat — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 06:46:50 -0800

My company system has an application that uses Oracle Text for querying large text fields in a natural query language -- I'm a big fan. Oracle Text supports the use of structured thesauri for queries too. This works well but I'm not sure what the best way to implement this is. I can perform a query using this hierarchy thus: $RELATION_OPERATOR($SEARCH_STRING, $THESAURUS_NAME, %DEPTH_OF_SEARCH)

E.g. NT(Felines,Animals,2) searches for text within which the word "felines" appears or any words that are up to two levels beneath "felines" in the hierarchy of the animals thesaurus. Tigers, Lions etc.

I'm mulling over the easiest way to present this functionality to users. I'm concerned that entering search terms such as NT(Felines,Animals,2) OR BT(Tabby,Animals,1) is overcomplicated for the user. But I think a GUI based query builder would be even worse (and be too restrictive).

Has anyone used Oracle Text thesauri and devised a simpler front end? Note that need to be able to query using multiple thesauri so I can't omit the thesaurus term and rely on default.

What modifies what?

cogneuro — Thu, 29 May 2008 04:38:06 -0800

I think that a thesaurus that was organized in terms of which adjectives typically go with which nouns would be really useful. Like, the adjectives that modify the verb "urge" (as in deep or unfulfilled, say). Same thing could be done for adverbs, e.g., ones that modify "talk" (relentlessly, incessantly, insightfully). I am aware of WordNet and many other on-line lexical databases like the BNC. I'm looking for something like a compiled list, based on actual usage, of what modifies what. thanks.

Where can I not find a synonym for the word...

any major dude — Wed, 21 May 2008 06:57:27 -0800

Where can I find a good online database that gives me similar meanings instead of just synonyms? I'm constantly looking for more descriptive words to use in my writing but very often I cannot think of the precise word I'm looking for but I can think of a similar word with a different definition. The frustration begins when I go to look that word up at an online thesaurus I'm and consistently presented with more words that have a similar meaning to the one I looked up - which are as useless to me as the first term. Are there any synonym databases online that will give me terms that expand the meaning sideways so I can find the right word?

For example I'm trying to write about how the suspension of Habeas Corpus has rendered the Bill of Rights "meaningless" but meaningless is not the term I want to use I want a word that's not coming to me. I check an online thesaurus and it dutifully gives me words that can replace meaningless accurately like "senseless" and "pointless". Still not helping. So now I have to think of another word, I check "extinct" and I get lifeless, defunct, departed. Those don't work either. Toothless? Naaah, and there are no synonyms for that anywhere. Neutered gives me castrated and sterile - still no word that conveys exactly what I want to express.

See what I'm getting at? What I need is a database that will do this work for me by suggesting similar meanings in either direction along the line. Is there a website that does that or something close to it?

and don't think I don't get the irony of people reading this question and wondering "what is this guy talking about?"

Replacing my favorite thesaurus now that it's more "efficient"?

Gucky — Tue, 29 Apr 2008 00:03:53 -0800

Recommendations for a good, verbose online thesaurus for wandering through words? thesaurus.com seems to have changed how they serve search results and my working style is screwed. I use thesaurus.com for hours a day. Their overly detailed results, as well as weird and obscure words that aren't even defined on dictionary.com, were perfect for the way I work (in naming).

I take a few days off, however, and "smart" has 8 results? I used to get pages of entries that were even vaguely related to smart, allowing me to travel interesting pathways and ideas.

I've tried Merriam-Webster's thesaurus and it works the limited and terrible way thesaurus.com does - great for the practical writer, not so great for a word wanderer. onelook.com is great for some applications, but their "limit to a specific concept" is wonky at best. Paper thesauri(?) are fairly useless for this purpose. Word Menu is a little more useful, but limited and slow, as I'm quicker with a mouse than paper.

Are there any tools that work in that wander and get lost way, particularly with a lot of words? Is there some way to get the way-too-prolific results from thesaurus.com again?

Help me send the Microsoft Word Thesaurus the way of the Stegosaurus, Tyrannosaurus, and Brontosaurus: to extinction.

dkleinst — Sat, 01 Dec 2007 20:36:25 -0800

Is there any way to improve the thesaurus in Microsoft Word? (Or for that matter, recommend another word processor with a better thesaurus.) I'm willing to pay, even. The thesaurus in Microsoft Word really helps me out, but I'm often surprised at the lack of words, bad interface, etc.. Is there any way to improve it? (New configuration, downloadable add-on pack, etc.)

Free Online Dictionaries?

sushiwiththejury — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 10:31:59 -0800

Where can I find free (and obscure) downloadable dictionaries? What I need:

1. Dictionaries and thesauri. Large ones. Multiple languages.
(My immediate needs are dictionaries, the thesauri are piggybacking ponies.)

2. Order of preference:
a. $language to-&-from English.
b. $language1 to-&-from $language2 (bonus points for far-flung language families.)

3. In a format easily read/convertible to text-only.

What I do not need:

1. Proprietary / OS-dependent formats.
A lot of free downloadable dictionary sites come with their own software. Boo.

2. Online lookup.
These lists need to be accessed offline.

Yes, I've looked at the archives.

I've looked at XDXF, and while they're great, I need slightly more esoteric/obscure dictionaries. Project Gutenberg has some. (Aleutian! Chinook!)

I'm sure there are niche webpages out there which host one-off texts (Ingrian to Jaqaru, perhaps?). These would be sweet.

On preview: please DO recommend copyrighted texts: this is for totally noncommercial gradschool work, so I'll write to the owner.

Anachronism, but for place instead of time

onalark — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 07:05:50 -0800

What's a good word for 'a spatially or geographically incongruous person/event/object', as an analogue to anachronism, which is 'temporally incongruous'? (New words okay) Here's a contrived example. Suppose I was visiting a city or region where the majority of its population did not eat meat, and walking down the middle of Main Street I saw a large steakhouse.

I would turn to my friend and say, "Wow, that steakhouse is a total ---------- here."

peter piper picked a pepper

randomizer — Mon, 18 Dec 2006 08:21:44 -0800

is there such a thing as a phonetic thesaurus? I'm looking for (preferably) a site, that gives a list of words that sound similar to the word you put entered.

How to name engineering widgets?

toomanyplugs — Fri, 01 Dec 2006 09:46:50 -0800

How to name engineering widgets? As a budding engineer, I'm beginning to pick up a vocabulary of widget names for things that lift, carry, spin, reciprocate, etc. Is there a place that I can go or a book (preferable) that has basically an engineering / machine design thesaurus?

I'm looking for something that essentially has a list of synonyms that I can use to transform "it spins and picks up shit" into a more professional sounding name like "rotating material elevation apparatus".

Ideally, it would have a heading of simple function terms, and a list of synonyms that get more creative.

nb - most of the Google results for "engineering thesaurus" are for an article indexing thesaurus, which does not do what I'm looking for.

Another word for Revolution?

forforf — Tue, 07 Feb 2006 20:02:33 -0800

MetaThesaurus: Help me find a word similar to "revolution". The context. We are trying to illuminate a new way of looking at an old problem, we've got the approach but we don't know how to "market" it to people that are attached to the old way. Think of explaining to IRS agents on a creative tax method you've used. Calling it a revolution or revolutionary would cause a negative reaction. New paradigm is accurate, but wouldn't work because it sounds too salesy for our audience. Out-of-the-box thinking is accurate, but too wordy. Heretical is getting closer, but still has a negative connotation we'd like to avoid. Other terms that have been discarded: Harebrained, Crazy and Bizarre. The word should be a positive word for a creative solution to a problem. Please help us get out of our vernacular rut!

Some good Spanish to English / English to Spanish desktop translation program?

masymas — Mon, 07 Nov 2005 20:45:54 -0800

Some good Spanish to English / English to Spanish desktop translation program? I'm looking for a free or cheap desktop translation app (platform=winxp) with functionality similar to that of WordWeb (hotkey, dictionary, thesaurus, pronunciation variants, etc). Bonus points for multiple languages.

vocabulary building

grumblebee — Wed, 18 May 2005 06:54:16 -0800

I'm pretty verbose, but I don't think my vocabulary has grown much in years. And I'd like to build it up. I'm looking for helpful resources. I'm fine with common words, and I'm not particularly interested in wacky, obsucure words that no one uses (except to brag about their huge vocabulary. Example: pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis). It's the in-between words that I want to bulk up on -- those words that may be a little literary or highbrow but which are still useful, i.e. parsimonious, martinet, and quittance. I know how to use a thesaurus and dictionary. But I'm wondering if anyone knows any other useful resources.

Buried Alive

seanyboy — Sun, 24 Apr 2005 03:26:25 -0800

Is there a single word which means "buried alive"?

Is there a good online dictionary of idioms and phrases?

inksyndicate — Thu, 16 Dec 2004 14:22:22 -0800

Is there a good online dictionary of idioms and phrases? I know there are online thesauri, but they don't have the colorful expressions from the original Roget's I.