Collins Pocket Reference Thesaurus in A-Z form [antikvár]

FOREWORD The name 'thesaurus' comes from a Greek word meaning treasure, treasury, or storehouse, and the Thesaurus is so named because it is a treasury or storehouse of words. Its purpose is to provide lists of words which mean the same, or almost the same, as the word which the user of the book has in mind, so that an alternative can be chosen. There are many reasons why an alternative word might be sought. It may be that the original word is felt to be inappropriate in some way — perhaps it is too formal or too colloquial, perhaps it is not quite precise in conveying the intended meaning, or somehow does not suit the tone of the piece of writing. Perhaps it is a perfectly suitable word in its context, but one that has already been used — the desire to avoid repetition is a frequent reason for consulting a thesaurus. Sometimes a word that is known to exist just will not come to mind; on such occasions the elusive word can be discovered by looking up an equivalent term in the Thesaurus. For these, and many other purposes which the user will soon discover, the Thesaurus is an invaluable help to anyone interested in improving their command of the English language. The Collins Pocket Reference Thesaurus is arranged, like a dictionary, in a single alphabetical listing of main-entry words. If the main-entry word has more than one meaning, synonyms for the different meanings are found at the one entry. The full range of alternatives is thus available at a glance, and the user of the book can choose the appropriate word from the entry without the need to refer to an index. The main-entry words have been selected with the needs of today's user in mind. They represent the core of modern English — those that are most likely to be looked up. The lists of synonyms provided, however, cover the whole range of usage and style, from slang and informal to literary and archaic, and the choice is generous, with an average of seventeen alternatives for every main-entry word. Labels identify synonyms that have a specialist or restricted sense in the context of the main-entry word. English, being derived from so many sources, is particularly rich in terms that are synonymous or nearly so; however, true synonyms, those that are substitutable in all contexts, are rare — a fact that gives the language interest and dimension. In preparing this book, therefore, care was taken to ensure that all the synonyms given were genuinely interchangeable with the main-entry word in some context. The precise usage or shade of meaning of any synonym unfamiliar to the user of the book may be checked by using a good dictionary as a companion to the Thesaurus.