Dictionary.com: English Words Reviews

by Lsajra99

Be forewarned - they sell your info and hide the fact that they do. This “option” is automatically turned on and buried at the bottom of the settings page. Probably by the time you find it it will be too late to turn it off and they’ve already sold your info.
The other thing that is absolutely frustrating is they changed how they display a list of words as you start typing. I used to be able to type a few letters then a list of words would appear that you could easily scroll down to preview. Now it sort of lets you scroll but not really. You have to PULL and HOLD on the list to see a few words past the last visible word but if you let go it BOUNCES back to the top. You can’t see past the first few words. For what purpose does this now serve? Why make the rest of the list so inaccessible? This is in the paid app version - at least I hope it’s the paid version because I paid for it and tried clicking Restore Purchases just to make sure.
I just made the switch to Merriam Webster and deleted Dictionarycom.

by Youlistenhere

This used to be a fun app to explore. Lists of related words with stories of their origin etc. I PURCHASED an additional component, the rhyming dictionary in addition to the free app. This did not protect me from the obnoxious, random ad pages that cover the screen and can’t be closed for so long it completely ruins the experience. The impossible to get rid of ads also play loud music/noises even with the volume down. Worse, once you eventually close the page hog it will return. It has been forced on you so long you can’t avoid seeing what it is for, so rejecting the same ad over and over is stupid marketing. You can look up a word still and face less advertising, but it takes longer to open Dictionarycom than it does to just google the word. The value in Dictionarycom was exploring other words. The in-depth info was well written and could keep a word lover happily occupied for a half hour. Someone worked hard on that content and it was always interesting and educational. No more. That’s gone behind ad walls it is not worth breaking through.

by Cc Apollo

It seems like every time I open Dictionarycom the frequency of ads that completely hijack my cell phone increase to the point where I'm considering switching to another dictionary. Have some mercy and consideration for those who have supported your website for years and years and years. Surely you get more than enough revenue from the plethora of other ads that make the interface almost unbearable, no? It feels a lot like greed at this point and I'm honestly tired of it.

Update: replying to each and every person who is giving fair feedback about the ads with a sales pitch shows you do not care about us. We understand that ads might be necessary, but DO THEY HAVE TO BE FULL SCREEN, VOLUME MAXIMUM, AGGRESSIVELY ANNOYING, RIDICULOUSLY ABRASIVE ADS OR IS YOUR ORGANIZATION JUST GREEDY. Think, think, think, think. Look at how many reviewers are saying the same thing. Fix it soon, because you've just lost yet another customer due to your lack of care.

by Verotheelf

I downloaded Dictionarycom on the first iPod I ever received about 10 yeas ago because I was stuck in the countryside during the summers in an area that only carried one cellphone company’s tower (but not in the house I stayed in, spotty at best in the rest of town, and naturally not the one I had anyway). I got a lot of reading done...so many books. Dictionarycom gave me the ability to look up words as I tried to expand my vocabulary and interests in other genres/forced summer reading for school. It was the offline feature that drew me to the application in the first place, the only limit of having no internet was the inability to here the audio pronunciation. It was perfect! How such a feature would be a paid service now, disadvantaging children and adults who may have limited access to internet services is disgusting. Would be enough for me to rate one star but then on top of that you’ve put so many intrusive ads as to make Dictionarycom unusable even if you have internet unless you pay for the upgrade. Shameful

by SceneQueenKJ

This used to be my favourite tool as a writer. I had all the synonyms I could need right at my fingertips without having to jump down a Google hole to find something. I never even complained about the whole buying-the-offline-version thing. But recently Dictionarycom has been a MAJOR mess.

Thesaurus synonyms used to be alphabetised, now the words are all scrambled up and I have to go searching for a word that I can't think of. I have bad eyesight so this an awful struggle for me, to have to read through every single word instead of just skipping to where I know it will be. I have no idea who thought THAT was a great idea, but whomever it was should be dropped off the side of a tall building because this B.S. isn't even worth being free. Not to mention the billions of ads that pop up. I understand it's free but I'm not paying $3 for an ad-free experience I can just as easily get by using a web browser.

TL;DR do NOT get Dictionarycom - it's disorganised, messy, and annoying.

by Meli026

I downloaded Dictionarycom about 6 years ago maybe. I instantly opted to upgrade because the ads were so intrusive it was almost impossible to use. At the time there was only one type of upgrade where you paid an upfront cost and it would permanently remove ads and allow you offline use. Everything was great. I use Dictionarycom daily. And then today, out of nowhere, i get on Dictionarycom and a get a huge DO YOU APPROVE OF TRUMP? ad. I was like ummmm.... what?? I absolutely paid to never see an ad on Dictionarycom so i thought maybe it was a glitch. Until i restart Dictionarycom to see that they’re offering me 10 separate upgrades. One to remove ads, one to use offline, one to create sentences, and a bunch of other unnecessary things. So do i get a refund for my upgrade since you removed it from me?? Please tell me this was a glitch. This was my favorite app :(

by Sixspencers

It would be nice if when I receive a notification about the Word of the Day that tapping on it would actually take me to the Word Of the Day. Sometimes it does work, but frequently it takes to me to a previous Word of the Day. When I tap on “View All” it shows me a card listing of all the “Words” of the Day EXCEPT the newest word - the Current word for which the notification was generated. It’s as if the notification for the current Word of the Day was generated in advance of when the word is actually added to the list. If this were only an occasional thing I wouldn’t complain, but it happens so frequently that it’s irritating.

Here’s an idea: don’t generate the daily notification until the Word has already been added to the list of all the Words of the Day.???? Here’s another idea: when a customer taps on your notification, make sure you navigate them to THAT word REGARDLESS of what word they have currently displayed in Dictionarycom and regardless of whether the word has yet been added to the Word of the Day card listing. I’m on the newest iOS version.

by British Paul

Both this and the pro version constantly crash. Like others, I found the advertisements incredibly frustrating and vastly excessive, but as a writer, I decided to invest in the pro version. What I discovered was an app that should be better, but is plagued by numerous flaws. The crashing occurs often and is obviously frustrating. So much so, I started referring to my Alexa for word information instead. I have also experienced Dictionarycom stating I need an internet connection when I’m clearly connected and with all other applications working on my device. The voice recognition for looking up words is also inferior, and results in so many inaccuracies, it cannot be trusted to be useful.

I wanted Dictionarycom to be great, especially after paying for the pro version and utilizing the website, but it’s just not at this chapter in its existence. I will be looking to see how similar app’s perform.

by A Stressed Hs Student

Great website. Great definitions. Ok app. It is not the most user-friendly. I will be looking up various definitions and all of the sudden, a loading icon will pop up and not go away until I leave and refresh Dictionarycom . The scrolling is also extremely sensitive, which can get annoying at times. Dictionarycom also has a feature that allows you to press a word in the definition, which takes you to the definition of the word you just pressed. Super useful, except when you press the back button to return to your original search, it takes you back like 4 searches ago instead of the one you just came from. This means you have to go out of your way to re-search what you were looking at in the first place. Other than that, Dictionarycom is pretty great.

by The.Rachel

1) The ads are overkill to say the least. This used to be. 5 star app- I never had to deal with all these stupid pop-ups and inescapable video ads. You’re lucky Siri’s integrated thesaurus is so limited or else I would’ve deleted Dictionarycom a long time ago.
2)Personally this has become a more recently growing issue. I’ll search thesaurus for word, “x”, with 0 results, no synonyms available. However, if I search for something synonymous with “x”, such as “n”, a whole list of synonyms pop up, including “x”!! ugh 🤷🏻‍♀️🤦🏻‍♀️
Other times when I’m looking through a given list of synonyms , I’ve clicked on a word for its definition, but there is no definition available bc the dictionary doesn't even recognize this word exists. . Vise versa after looking up a definition , I’ll try to use thesaurus on it , but it comes up no synonyms available.
And trust me both problems are equally frustrating. Seriously, how can you know the synonymy of a word on one side of your app, but can’t deliver its friggin definition on the other side. Stupid.

by Grglzo

For the last few weeks (or maybe the last month) I’ve been experiencing a lot of issues with Dictionarycom , I have the upgrades and everything in order to avoid distractions in Dictionarycom , however I been having a lot of issues with the search of vocabulary... when I used to type something I would have to search for the word and then refresh for the result to show up as it always gave me an “error” and I wasn’t able to see the content unless I refreshed my search which got super annoying after a couple of times I had to do it, now after this update I try searching for words and it keeps loading indefinitely and no results are shown. This is very annoying and time consuming and it’s super inconvenient... I been having to go to google in order to find the definitions. Super disappointed, please fix these ongoing issues.

by SonnyFio

In my life, and in my life’s work, I have long labored with speaking, writing, and when preparing factual reports of important incidents and events.
It has always been my effort to convey my thoughts to others, official or otherwise, succinctly and with utter accuracy. In the process, I learned a wide vocabulary is the foundation for providing clear focus about any occurrence whether it pertains to personal issues or creating official reports for myriad purposes.
Making it a point to accomplish this, I purposefully delved into dictionaries and thesauruses not to impress and amaze, but rather to be exceptionally lucid and to provide a view of things in their true and relative importance. Hence, I endeavored to make use all media that enhanced my vocabulary. While there is always room for improvement, I take satisfaction in knowing that my store of words is ample to bring about accuracy to my spoken and written words. I owe much to Merriam-Webster involving this persistent activity, for it has served me well.

by P124

I originally used the free version of this and was frustrated with the pop ups and constant crashing (every couple search, it crashes and you have to reopen). So, I paid for Merriam-Webster and I will say I got frustrated with that because definitions are short, no second or third options for pronunciation, some words don’t show up (I guess that version is based on abridged? Many words I found on here, I couldn’t find on MW). So I re-downloaded this and for a few bucks more that MW, you get tons more feature. I find the Learners, Idioms, and Example Sentence really useful. If you use this everyday, just shell out the 6 bucks. It’s the price of a Frappuccino, for Christ’s sake.

by GirlDr

Dictionary of the day is an effective and fun way to easily increase your vocabulary or remind you of words that might have slipped your mind over the years or for that moment when you are distracted and do not want to wake up slapping your forehead at 3AM. Also, one of the biggest benefits is that I am usually able to sneak in at least 3-5 other new/remembered words after reading the daily one. This is why I initially got Dictionarycom . However, after now using this Dictionary app every day over the course of years; I have found it to be helpful, efficient, easy to use and can be fun and diverting. The reasonable price is the cost of an high calorie, high cholesterol, fattening and unhealthy CappaFrappaAnywayYouLikeItCino and once you enjoy that drink it will be gone forever. But this wonderful Dictionary/Thesaurus with all of it’s content will be with you forever. Considering other options that I have personally used; such as MW, et. al., I most highly recommend Dictionarycom.

by Joaniewright

My daughter uses Dictionarycom almost everyday as a companion to reading her novels. She oftentimes comes across words she is unfamiliar with. The dictionary app provides a quick way to access words while she still holds onto her book. We also did homework together last night and the thesaurus feature was wonderfully designed so that one can search antonyms and synonyms while effortlessly switching back to the definition of the original words and newly found words. Lastly, this is a "must purchase" app. You'll experience Dictionarycom best by having no interruptions. This is important especially if you want a child to use it to build vocabulary while reading independently.

by AnnlynnRN

I began using Dictionarycom a couple years ago to help my son expand his vocabulary. Soon after, I was using the thesaurus for myself on a regular basis when drafting anything from professional letters to simple emails to friends! The thesaurus is my favorite. I also use the dictionary occasionally when I'm not sure if I'm using a particular word appropriately in a sentence. I love Dictionarycom. I also used it to help a friend draft a resume that was very professional. (Yes, she got the job!) I should also mention the speed of Dictionarycom. I can find a synonym or definition in a matter of seconds. Again, I LOVE Dictionarycom. Now, if someone could come up with an app to help us learn to use punctuation correctly, I would use that everyday as well.

by Lov Money

I am a writer but terrible at spelling. And even do not how toPronounce a word. This is my favorite app. If u want a easy app. That just helps u with hardly any effort. Dictionarycom is for u. I am writing a book for God.
I use Dictionarycom a lot and I have gained do more knowledge from it.
I love looking up definitions to words. To open the meaning of it. And it pronounces words that I do not know how to. Thank you very much. Dictionarycom has opened new worlds to me. By really learning words we often use. But each time I look up a word. After reading theDefinition and hearing it pronounced. I have gained a deeper knowledge of that word. If I can not pronounce the word. I keep listening to thePronunciation of words. That Dictionarycom taught me. ***GET Dictionarycom*** u will grown to depend on it. And the knowledge of words are addictive.

by Julie Meyers

Absolutely the most used app on my phone at least the most daily personal app that gives me insight and I’m in some way moved when it seems that on most days that they are specifically hand picked for me or that it had a close encounter with something of my life that seems to be all to normal to me know because I can see were in knowledge comes very interesting things like education and technologies and that can be shared like a virus and that each time we send a idea or image in our Minds that we are spreading out disease of a thought processs back into the world around us to be chipper fed and recalculated into one disease infested blob of a thing after the next to composer of the world in broad daylight running in famed out crantastic lightbulb yikes for fact

by Of Course That Name Was Taken

Great App! I love the layout, it’s quick and easy. Lots of options including word of the day, favorite searches, and a premium package. I only have a couple cons, I do wish Dictionarycom had a “recent search” options which ties into my second con. Sometimes when you exit Dictionarycom momentarily, when you open it up you’re back on the main page. If there was a recent search option or a way for it to not time out so quickly it would make it a bit easier. I personally use this for school and my business. So when I’m looking for a word I use the Thesaurus frequently. It’s very nice you can click on the word options and view their definitions. But if you exit Dictionarycom and it’s gone. Can be hard to find that trail again.

by Keely Maltby

Mark Twain advised ; “Never argue with a stupid person, they will only drag you down to their level and then beat you with experience.”
I use the Dictionary app every single day, no kidding. To take quizzes, learn the difference of and the correct way to use words. Word of the day is awesome and in my morning email daily. Pretty cool right? The videos are clear concise and often humorous making learning fun. Sometimes I am little shocked by the subject/content of the articles/videos ie; (or is it eg;?) lol
Topics of sex & sexuality, rec. drugs I kinda think “whoa” however by all accounts they’re current, relevant and educational. The other apps associated with Dictionary are fantastic also! Using the same or similar format makes them easy to navigate from day 1. I have Dictionarycom 5 stars because they didn’t offer any above that.

by Rooattack

Huge problems here and guess what? they don’t care. Here’s what to look for:

- Even after paying for the highest upgrade, Dictionarycom inundates you with obstructing ads that block you for 10 secs at a time that you cannot close. Moreover, you’re a full paying customer at this point and they still desperately force ads for revenue.

- the ads’ “X” button to close the ad suddenly disappears after 0.5s before you can close it. They must think people are complete idiots.

- you can’t look up words like “craving” — it only takes “crave” in the thesaurus. Basically, Dictionarycom is pretty dumb too.

I’ve had Dictionarycom for almost a year now and finally switching since they have not responded to a single review, comment, or email touch my team and I has sent the past year. We were giving them a chance but now we plan to start hitting social hard with this review.

The conclusion is that desperately monetized apps that disregard user-empathy at all costs end up losing fast. The ones that wait for thousands to complain about something (trying to get a quick buck in before the media rants) lose all respect. The ones that don’t listen stop being listened to by the public in return. Too bad, you had your chance.

by A_E_88

Hello, I have noticed the pronunciation feature no longer works. While scrolling through other users’ reviews in Apple’s App Store, I found a developer response to a particular review on March 26th, stating Dictionarycom had updated to only provide an audio pronunciation when the audio or ringer is off. However, I do not believe that makes sense as the user self selects into tapping the pronunciation feature to hear the audio version whether or not the ringer is off or on, so the audio will not be intrusive as it is expected given the user’s immediate environment. Could you please look into allowing the audio pronunciation to work if tapped, regardless of volume settings. Looking forward to hearing back. Thanks.

by Konokopia

My question, after reading some “articles” from this “dictionary”, is — is this a legitimate dictionary or yet another medium of the Left wing propaganda machine? Should we just label this as “The Progressives’ Dictionary”? I have not taken the time to look up definitions for “socialism”, “capitalism”, or “gender” yet, and I won’t bother, but I would be wary of many definitions that this dictionary offers that have political/social significance (for example, “assault rifle”). I love words, and I like all the extra information about each word that this dictionary offers, but the concern is, can this information be trusted? I would not use this as a primary source for my word definitions, but as curiosity. It is fun to compare real definitions of words with the Progressives’ definitions of the same words.

by Nickname1840264849

Alright....I do NOT write reviews. But this time.....I feel like someone needs to read this. Dictionarycom could be the best dictionary app on the inter-webs. I use it every day, and I just feel like the definitions and overall information I get about the words I look up are fantastic. But no matter how good the content is, my experience with Dictionarycom is absolutely ruined by the many bugs and general issues I experience while using it. How many times can it possibly crash? Why when I select a word based on auto-fill suggestions does the definition refuse to load? Such potential, such a disappointment in so many ways. Fix a tiny handful of things and this is the best dictionary app there is, by far.

by Monteghetto20

I have an issue with the scrolling method while reading a definition or a list of words in the Thesaurus. When you scroll down the page, the bar that has the “Definition”, “Thesaurus”, “Learners”, and “Origin” tabs wants to move up to cover things like the searched word, its pronunciation, etc. I like this feature because it tries to give you more space for reading. However, slightly swiping down brings the upper half of the page back down. I like the idea, but if scroll back and forth a little bit then the content on the screen to just move around instead of staying in place. I hope this makes sense what I’m trying to explain.

by Jimesta

I myself use Dictionarycom in many different situations, and find it useful and informative . One item that i use nearly everyday is the word of the day. There was a word this last week that appeared and i shared it with my wife and kids. They questioned whether it was used that way. I looked it up and it was not found in either the dictionary or in the thesaurus. My first reaction was that maybe I had used a different App. However, i checked the list of words of the day and it was there. There may be reasons for this but I would suggest that any words of the day be included in the dictionary. The word I was looking up was “dumbledore.” Thanks for the great resource.

by 6T4

I’ve purchased all of the upgrades for Dictionarycom and have been enjoying its content for years. Over this time I have amassed a fair quantity of “favorited” words, likely numbering the hundreds. Whether this fact has anything to do with the issue I am unsure, however I cannot scroll through my favorites list. Dictionarycom simply appears to not recognize my input, and will only list the first few words, leaving me with a limited selection of vernacular only starting with “A”. This is quite annoying. Are there any ways in which to fix this issue? I have already attempted to re-download Dictionarycom .

Many thanks.