kulahawaii

My 12 YOD wants a thesaurus. I've checked Amazon, but find the choices
a little overwhelming. If you have a favorite edition please let me
know. She wants a grown-up version that she can use right up until and
after she's a famous author. ;-) Hardcover is fine.
Thanks!
Kristin

Robyn Coburn

<<<<< My 12 YOD wants a thesaurus. I've checked Amazon, but find the
choices
a little overwhelming. If you have a favorite edition please let me
know. She wants a grown-up version that she can use right up until and
after she's a famous author. ;-) Hardcover is fine.>>>>

Roget's is the classic, but there are also some online ones that make
following a search thread really fun.

Example the Encarta thesaurus that is part of my Microsoft Outlook Email and
Word programs.

http://encarta.msn.com/

Robyn L. Coburn


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[email protected]

I have a hardcover Roget's (I should leave that out sometime...) but it's not
the easiest thing in the world to use. On the other hand, if she'll like
browsing and just poking around in it, it can be GREAT, because worlds are
grouped by similar meanings and it kinda flows from one to another.

Alphabetical listings, while "easier" aren't as likely to yield fun surprises
and ideas that go "ping!"

What I use anymore is google. Put the word in and either "thesaurus" or
"synonyms" but the thing is, synonyms are only single-word options, and a
thesaurus will have phrases.

If you think she'd be interested, maybe mention, when she gets one, that the
pile of words isn't because people just can't decide what words to chuck out
of English, but that they're from different languages and have different
connotations--do you want to say it nicely or not? Are you being optimistic or
not? What do you want to imply about the thing or the person's motivations?
Maybe because English is such a book-worshipping, written language and
Brits-proper seem to be be able to speak without moving their lips or their bodies,
the subtleties of English are in word choice, not so much intonation or gesture.

Sandra


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Shields

Thanks for all the suggestions. I will suggest the online sources to
Chloe, which I'm sure she'll use, but she was looking for something to take
with her in the car, to bed and on trips. She takes pencil and paper nearly
everywhere she goes.

I had been thinking about a Roget's edition, but there are so many it really
is overwhelming. Then I came across this one:

Bartlett's Roget's Thesaurus
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0316101389/qid=1123947415/sr=2-1/ref=
pd_bbs_b_2_1/103-4170986-3357449

What do you thesaurus connoisseurs think of that one? It sounds like a good
one for browsing and pondering.
Kristin

Joyce Fetteroll

On Aug 13, 2005, at 11:42 AM, Shields wrote:

> What do you thesaurus connoisseurs think of that one? It sounds
> like a good
> one for browsing and pondering.
>

That one looks like fun :-)

As long as it's not in dictionary form any of them will be great for
browsing. (It makes it confusing when they have Roget's in dictionary
form since I think Roget's contribution was to put it in conceptual
form.)

When I'm picking something out I just read through all the reviews at
Amazon and that gives a pretty good idea of what's great and not so
great about something.

Joyce

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Shields

Yes, I thought the reviews of this one sound very good, but the last one was
from 2003 so I wondered if anything came out since then that's better.
Kristin

-----Original Message-----
From: [email protected]
As long as it's not in dictionary form any of them will be great for
browsing. (It makes it confusing when they have Roget's in dictionary
form since I think Roget's contribution was to put it in conceptual
form.)

When I'm picking something out I just read through all the reviews at
Amazon and that gives a pretty good idea of what's great and not so
great about something.

Joyce

Shana Ronayne Hickman

Sorry to chime in late, but I have to recommend _The Synonym Finder_
by J.I. Rodale. I'm a thesaurus hound, and this is BY FAR my
favorite. It's not new, but I think it's definitely the best. I
opened to a random word: intact. In _The Synonym Finder_, there are
51 synonyms. In my only other thesaurus (Roget's College Thesaurus),
there are 4. It's like this for every word, no matter what other
thesaurus I use.

For a poet who finds herself in the throes of writer's block time and
again, this has been my savior. Here's the Amazon link (though you
can find them used almost anywhere): http://tinyurl.com/c66k6 Lots
of wonderful reviews.

Shana
www.livefreelearnfree.com

--- In [email protected], "Shields" <shields@o...>
wrote:
> Yes, I thought the reviews of this one sound very good, but the last
one was
> from 2003 so I wondered if anything came out since then that's better.
> Kristin

Shields

Thanks Shana. I'll order this one too. Kristin

-----Original Message-----
From: [email protected] Sorry to chime in late, but I
have to recommend _The Synonym Finder_
by J.I. Rodale. I'm a thesaurus hound, and this is BY FAR my
favorite. It's not new, but I think it's definitely the best. I
opened to a random word: intact. In _The Synonym Finder_, there are
51 synonyms. In my only other thesaurus (Roget's College Thesaurus),
there are 4. It's like this for every word, no matter what other
thesaurus I use.

For a poet who finds herself in the throes of writer's block time and
again, this has been my savior. Here's the Amazon link (though you
can find them used almost anywhere): http://tinyurl.com/c66k6 Lots
of wonderful reviews.

Shana
www.livefreelearnfree.com