Joyce Hawkins

A wonderful reference book. I refer to this edition almost every day, for checking a fact, an etymology, or a pronunciation. A one-stop reference book that's worth its (not inconsiderable) weight in gold.

Being an English As a Foreign language teacher, this has been always the source of correct American English.

Of all the dictionaries I've purchased over the years -- and there have been many -- this one ranks as the best. It's very rare that I don't find what I'm looking for in this. This is everything a dictionary is supposed to be. Forget Webster, go for an Oxford dictionary every time.

At the time it was published, this was considered The Source for the definitive usage of the American English language. The Source for spelling, The Source for pronounciation (do you pronounce the "t" in "often"? Do you pronounce the first "r" in "February"? ("No" and "Yes") This dictionary is a "must have" if you want to know how to speak your language.