Chambers Dictionary

I’ve been using the Chambers Thesaurus for years, and recently decided to get the dictionary to go along with it. I’ve been extremely pleased so far. If you compare words, the built in dictionary that comes with the MacOS generally has extremely terse entries, while the Chambers Dictionary gives you a wealth of information. A concrete example is the word “indigene”. In the MacOS dictionary, you get a single definition—“an indigenous person” and a brief bit about the origin of the word. The definition basically violates the age old rule of not using the word itself or a grammatical version of the word in the definition. In the Chambers Dictionary you get not only the definition (in this case “Native, aboriginal”) that is more useful, and you also get a fairly large set of entries around the different grammatical versions of the word, each one being a link to other entries. This is extremely powerful, as it allows you to start with a version of the word (in my case, a noun) but be able to see the adjective, adverb, verb, and other noun versions of the word. As a writer, word choice is my primary concern. The Chambers Dictionary output for definitions is so much richer. The UI is nicely put together. You can type words into the text field repeatedly without having to click back into it. It supports swiping left and right. Major parts of the definition content are links so if you want you can really dig into the word. You will pay for this app—$13.99 when I bought it—but honestly, it being such a central tool to my work, that price was entirely reasonable. If I were buying the equivilantly powerful physical dictionary, it would cost way more than this. My only real request/desire for functionality is if you buy both the dictionary and the thesaurus, it would be cool if they could be “combined” into a single app. In the definition/word choice panel, there could be a tab for dictionary and another for thesaurus. I saw that there is a Chambers app that combines both, but I already purchased them both and don’t want to pay again just to get a single app.

These WordWeb dictionaries are basically an exceptional replacement for the built-indictionaries in MacOS. The content is very well organanized, and the interface is up-to-date with the latest improvements in MacOS. As far as content, it does not get any better than Oxford and Chambers. Of course it would be amaziang to have the entire Oxford English Dictionary, but that license is impossible to obtain and would cost $1,000. But for everyday use this is a fantastic set of products. If you have not looked, check out the other offerings by this developer. I have used these WordWeb softwares for 9 years (since 2009) before they were on the App Store. They are truly excellent for writers, academics, and other researchers. Fast, efficient with good content. (I am also putting this review on the other WordWeb App Store products I own, because they really are part of an integrated product.)

I use the Chambers Dictionary and companion Thesaurus app on a regular basis. The definitions are concise yet provide the full range of multiple meanings. I particulary like being able to browse the previous and next set of entries in the sidebar, which is great when you want to quickly glance at similar words. Likewise with the companion Thesaurus app installed, you can quickly toggle between the dictionary and thesaurus with a single-click. Great value for the money. It’s the only dictionary I use.

Because I'm in the US I was hesitant to buy Chambers. But since the price is so low I took the plunge. Now I can't understand why I ever hesitated. This is one of the best Dictionaries of the English language available and it plugs right into WordWeb for cross referencing. I also got the Chambers Thesaurus which I'm equally happy with. Highly recommend it.