400,000+ words.
The 10-volume (here bound in 12) complete first edition set of the OED. If you are inclined to read the OED, even at a word a day, the original 400,000+ words would take over 1000 years to read.
https://youtube.com/watch?v=sLPk1f47WKY
How many words is the first Oxford dictionary?
Robert Cawdrey’s Table Alphabeticall, published in 1604, was the first single-language English dictionary ever published. It lists approximately 3000 words, defining each one with a simple and brief description.
How big was the first Oxford dictionary?
In fact, it took over 40 years until the 125th and final fascicle was published in April 1928 and the full dictionary was complete–at over 400,000 words and phrases in 10 volumes–and published under the title A New English Dictionary on Historical Principles.
How long was the original Oxford dictionary?
The dictionary was to be published as interval fascicles, with the final form in four volumes, totalling 6,400 pages.
How many words did the first edition of the dictionary contains?
This first edition of the dictionary contained a 42,773-word list, to which only a few more were added in subsequent editions. One of Johnson’s important innovations was to illustrate the meanings of his words by literary quotation, of which there are around 114,000.
What was the very 1st word?
Also according to Wiki answers,the first word ever uttered was “Aa,” which meant “Hey!” This was said by an australopithecine in Ethiopia more than a million years ago.
What was the 1st word in English?
According to a 2009 study by researchers at Reading University, the oldest words in the English language include “I“, “we“, “who“, “two” and “three“, all of which date back tens of thousands of years.
Who wrote the 1st Oxford dictionary?
The project proceeded slowly after the Society’s first grand statement of purpose. Eventually, in 1879, the Society made an agreement with the Oxford University Press and James A. H. Murray to begin work on a New English Dictionary (as the Oxford English Dictionary was then known).
Which dictionary has most words?
Oxford Dictionary
Oxford Dictionary has 273,000 headwords; 171,476 of them being in current use, 47,156 being obsolete words and around 9,500 derivative words included as subentries.
What is the longest word in dictionary?
Pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis
1 Pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis (forty-five letters): A lung disease caused by the inhalation of silica or quartz dust.
Who wrote the first word?
The First Word by Christine Kenneally: 9780143113744 | PenguinRandomHouse.com: Books.
How long did the first dictionary take?
First published in 1755, the dictionary took just over eight years to compile, required six helpers and listed 40,000 words.
How many words are in the Oxford English Dictionary?
More than 600,000 words, over a thousand years. Welcome to OED Online. If you or your library subscribes, dive straight in to the riches of the English language. If not, click on the images below to learn more about the OED, see What’s new, or take a look at Aspects of English, our language feature section.
What 3 letter word has more than 645?
run
In yesterday’s New York Times, author Simon Winchester reports we have a winner, the seemingly humble three-letter word, run. Definitions begin with, to go with quick steps on alternate feet, and go on and on for 75 columns of type and 645 meanings for the verb form alone.
How much is the full Oxford English Dictionary?
The Oxford English Dictionary is available by subscription to institutions and individuals. We are pleased to offer annual individual OED subscriptions for $100 in the US or £100 for the Rest of the World.
How many words are in the Oxford Dictionary 2022?
Merriam-Webster online dictionary informs its readers that their latest official edition includes approximately 470,000 entries. Main page of Oxford English Dictionary official website states that they cover over 600,000 terms.
What language did cavemen speak?
It is called Proto-Indo-European and was spoken nearly 5,000 years ago!
Can you invent a new word?
A lot of us make up new words. They’re called neologisms or coinages. Making up new words is fun, creative, and—especially when that word addresses a gap in the language—an extremely useful thing to do.
How old is the word mother?
First recorded before 900; Middle English mother, moder, Old English mōdor; cognate with Dutch moeder, German Mutter, Old Norse mōthir, Latin māter, Greek mḗtēr, mā́tēr, Sanskrit mātar-; all from Proto-Indo-European mātér-.
What is the oldest English word in the world?
Scientists at the University of Reading have discovered that ‘I’, ‘we’, ‘who’ and the numbers ‘1’, ‘2’ and ‘3’ are amongst the oldest words, not only in English, but across all Indo-European languages.
What is the last word in the Oxford English Dictionary?
Louis’s favorite word, “Zyzzyva,” which now has the unique distinction of being the OED’s last word. It’s a noun, pronounced “zih-zih-vah” and defined as “a genus of tropical weevils (family Curculionidae) native to South America and typically found on or near palm trees.”