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As of 30 November, 2005, the '''''OED''''' included about 301,100 main entries, comprising more than 350 million printed characters. Additional to the [[headword]]s of main entries, it has 157,000 combinations and derivatives in bold type, and 169,000 phrases and combinations in bold italic type, a total of 616,500 word-forms. It has 137,000 [[pronunciation]]s, 249,300 [[etymology|etymologies]], 577,000 cross-references, and 2,412,400 illustrative [[quotation]]s. The latest, complete ''printed'' edition of the dictionary (Second Edition, 1989) was 20 volumes, comprising 21,730 pages, with 291,500 entries.

As of 30 November, 2005, the '''''OED''''' included about 301,100 main entries, comprising more than 350 million printed characters. Additional to the [[headword]]s of main entries, it has 157,000 combinations and derivatives in bold type, and 169,000 phrases and combinations in bold italic type, a total of 616,500 word-forms. It has 137,000 [[pronunciation]]s, 249,300 [[etymology|etymologies]], 577,000 cross-references, and 2,412,400 illustrative [[quotation]]s. The latest, complete ''printed'' edition of the dictionary (Second Edition, 1989) was 20 volumes, comprising 21,730 pages, with 291,500 entries.

It clarified:

It clarified:

*"Hence we exclude all words that had become obsolete by 1150 [the end of the [[Old English]] era]&nbsp;... Dialectal words and forms which occur since 1500 are not admitted, except when they continue the history of the word or sense once in general use, illustrate the history of a word, or have themselves a certain literary currency."</center>

*"Hence we exclude all words that had become obsolete by 1150 [the end of the [[Old English]] era]&nbsp;... Dialectal words and forms which occur since 1500 are not admitted, except when they continue the history of the word or sense once in general use, illustrate the history of a word, or have themselves a certain literary currency."

The ''OED'' is the focus of much scholarly work about English words. Its choice of order in listing [[#Spelling|variant spellings]] of headwords influences the written English of many countries.

The ''OED'' is the focus of much scholarly work about English words. Its choice of order in listing [[#Spelling|variant spellings]] of headwords influences the written English of many countries.

Originally, the dictionary was unconnected to the university; it was a project conceived in [[London]], by the [[Philological Society]], when [[Richard Chenevix Trench]], [[Herbert Coleridge]], and [[Frederick James Furnivall|Frederick Furnivall]] were dissatisfied with the available English dictionaries.

Originally, the dictionary was unconnected to the university; it was a project conceived in [[London]], by the [[Philological Society]], when [[Richard Chenevix Trench]], [[Herbert Coleridge]], and [[Frederick James Furnivall|Frederick Furnivall]] were dissatisfied with the available English dictionaries.

In [[June]] [[1857]], they formed an "Unregistered Words Committee" for finding unlisted and undefined words not in current dictionaries. But Trench's report, presented in November, was not a simple list of unregistered words; it was a study titled ''On Some Deficiencies in our English Dictionaries'', which he concluded were sevenfold:

In June, 1857, they formed an "Unregistered Words Committee" for finding unlisted and undefined words not in current dictionaries. But Trench's report, presented in November, was not a simple list of unregistered words; it was a study titled ''On Some Deficiencies in our English Dictionaries'', which he concluded were sevenfold:

*Incomplete coverage of obsolete words

*Incomplete coverage of obsolete words

*Inconsistent coverage of families of related words

*Inconsistent coverage of families of related words

It was February 1, 1884, 23 years after Coleridge's sample pages, when the first portion, or [[fascicle]], of the Dictionary was published. The full title had now become ''A New English Dictionary on Historical Principles; Founded Mainly on the Materials Collected by The Philological Society'', and the 352-page volume, covering words from ''A'' to ''Ant'', was priced at 12[[shilling|s]].6[[penny|d]] or [[U.S. dollar|$]]3.25 U.S.  The total sales were a disappointing 4,000 copies.

It was February 1, 1884, 23 years after Coleridge's sample pages, when the first portion, or [[fascicle]], of the Dictionary was published. The full title had now become ''A New English Dictionary on Historical Principles; Founded Mainly on the Materials Collected by The Philological Society'', and the 352-page volume, covering words from ''A'' to ''Ant'', was priced at 12[[shilling|s]].6[[penny|d]] or [[U.S. dollar|$]]3.25 U.S.  The total sales were a disappointing 4,000 copies.

It was now clear to the OUP that it would take much too long to complete the work if the editorial arrangements were not revised. Accordingly they supplied additional funding for assistants, but made two new demands on Murray in return. The first was that he move from Mill Hill to [[Oxford, England|Oxford]], which he did in 1885. Again he had a [[Scriptorium]] built on his property (to appease a neighbour, this one had to be half-buried in the ground), and the Post Office installed a [[pillar box]] directly in front of his house. [[Image:78BanburyRoadOxford 20060715KaihsuTai.jpg|thumb|right|The house at 78 Banbury Road, [[Oxford]], erstwhile residence of [[James Murray (lexicographer)|James Murray]], editor of the Oxford English Dictionary.]]

It was now clear to the OUP that it would take much too long to complete the work if the editorial arrangements were not revised. Accordingly they supplied additional funding for assistants, but made two new demands on Murray in return. The first was that he move from Mill Hill to [[Oxford, England|Oxford]], which he did in 1885. Again he had a [[Scriptorium]] built on his property (to appease a neighbour, this one had to be half-buried in the ground), and the Post Office installed a [[pillar box]] directly in front of his house.  

Murray was more resistant to the second requirement: that if he could not meet the desired schedule, then he must hire a second senior editor who would work in parallel, outside his supervision, on words from different parts of the alphabet. He did not want to share the work, and felt that it would eventually go faster as he gained experience. But it did not, and eventually [[Philip Lyttelton Gell|Philip Gell]] of the OUP forced his hand. [[Henry Bradley]], whom Murray had hired as his assistant in 1884, was promoted and began working independently in 1888, in a room at the [[British Museum]] in London. In 1896 Bradley moved to Oxford, working at the university itself.

Murray was more resistant to the second requirement: that if he could not meet the desired schedule, then he must hire a second senior editor who would work in parallel, outside his supervision, on words from different parts of the alphabet. He did not want to share the work, and felt that it would eventually go faster as he gained experience. But it did not, and eventually [[Philip Lyttelton Gell|Philip Gell]] of the OUP forced his hand. [[Henry Bradley]], whom Murray had hired as his assistant in 1884, was promoted and began working independently in 1888, in a room at the [[British Museum]] in London. In 1896 Bradley moved to Oxford, working at the university itself.

But by this time it was clear that the full text of the Dictionary now needed to be computerized. Achieving this would still require retyping it once, but thereafter it would always be accessible for computer searching &mdash; as well as for whatever new editions of the dictionary might be desired, starting with an integration of the supplementary volumes and the main text. Preparation for this began in 1983 and editorial work started the following year under the administrative direction of Timothy J. Benbow, and with [[John Simpson (lexicographer)|John A. Simpson]] and Edmund S. C. Weiner as co-editors.

But by this time it was clear that the full text of the Dictionary now needed to be computerized. Achieving this would still require retyping it once, but thereafter it would always be accessible for computer searching &mdash; as well as for whatever new editions of the dictionary might be desired, starting with an integration of the supplementary volumes and the main text. Preparation for this began in 1983 and editorial work started the following year under the administrative direction of Timothy J. Benbow, and with [[John Simpson (lexicographer)|John A. Simpson]] and Edmund S. C. Weiner as co-editors.

And so the '''New Oxford English Dictionary (NOED)''' project began. More than 120 keyboarders of International Computaprint Corporation in [[Tampa, Florida]], and Fort Washington, Pennsylvania, USA, started keying in over 350,000,000 characters, their work checked by 55 proof-readers in England. But, retyping the text alone was not sufficient; all the information represented by the complex [[typography]] of the original dictionary had to be retained, which was done by [[markup (computer programming)|marking up]] the content in [[SGML]]; and a specialized [[search engine]] and display software were also needed to access it. Under a 1985 agreement, some of this software work was done at the [[University of Waterloo]], Canada, at the ''Centre for the New Oxford English Dictionary'', led by [[Frank Tompa|F.W. Tompa]] and [[Gaston Gonnet]]; this search technology went on to be the basis for [[Open Text Corporation]]. Computer hardware, database and other software, development managers, and programmers for the project were donated by the British subsidiary of [[IBM]]; the colour syntax-directed editor for the project,

And so the '''New Oxford English Dictionary (NOED)''' project began. More than 120 keyboarders of International Computaprint Corporation in [[Tampa, Florida]], and Fort Washington, Pennsylvania, USA, started keying in over 350,000,000 characters, their work checked by 55 proof-readers in England. But, retyping the text alone was not sufficient; all the information represented by the complex [[typography]] of the original dictionary had to be retained, which was done by [[markup (computer programming)|marking up]] the content in [[SGML]]; and a specialized [[search engine]] and display software were also needed to access it. Under a 1985 agreement, some of this software work was done at the [[University of Waterloo]], Canada, at the ''Centre for the New Oxford English Dictionary'', led by [[Frank Tompa|F.W. Tompa]] and [[Gaston Gonnet]]; this search technology went on to be the basis for [[Open Text Corporation]]. Computer hardware, database and other software, development managers, and programmers for the project were donated by the British subsidiary of [[IBM]]; the colour syntax-directed editor for the project,

[http://domino.research.ibm.com/tchjr/journalindex.nsf/0/bc33186c36e05a9e85256bfa0067f698?OpenDocument LEXX], was written by [[Mike Cowlishaw]] of IBM. The University of Waterloo, in Canada, volunteered to design the database. A. Walton Litz, an English professor at Princeton University who served on the Oxford University Press advisory council, told Paul Gray for ''TIME'' ([[March 27]] [[1989]]), "I've never been associated with a project, I've never even heard of a project, that was so incredibly complicated and that met every deadline."

[https://domino.research.ibm.com/tchjr/journalindex.nsf/0/bc33186c36e05a9e85256bfa0067f698?OpenDocument LEXX], was written by [[Mike Cowlishaw]] of IBM. The University of Waterloo, in Canada, volunteered to design the database. A. Walton Litz, an English professor at Princeton University who served on the Oxford University Press advisory council, told Paul Gray for ''TIME'' ([[March 27]] [[1989]]), "I've never been associated with a project, I've never even heard of a project, that was so incredibly complicated and that met every deadline."

By 1989 the NOED project had achieved its primary goals, and the editors, working online, had successfully combined the original text, Burchfield's supplement, and a small amount of newer material into a single unified dictionary. The word "new" was again dropped from the name, and the Second Edition of the ''OED,'' or the ''OED2,'' was published. (The first edition [[retronym]]ically became the '''OED1'''.)

By 1989 the NOED project had achieved its primary goals, and the editors, working online, had successfully combined the original text, Burchfield's supplement, and a small amount of newer material into a single unified dictionary. The word "new" was again dropped from the name, and the Second Edition of the ''OED,'' or the ''OED2,'' was published. (The first edition [[retronym]]ically became the '''OED1'''.)

===Electronic versions===

===Electronic versions===

Now that the text of the dictionary was digitized and online, it could also be published on [[CD-ROM]]. The text of the First Edition was made available in 1988. Afterward, three versions of the second edition were issued. Version 1 (1992) was identical in content to the printed Second Edition, and the CD itself was not copy-protected. Version 2 (1999) had some additions to the corpus, and updated software with improved searching features, but had clumsy copy-protection that made it difficult to use and would even cause the program to deny use to OUP staff in the middle of demonstrations of the product. Version 3 (2002) has additional words and software improvements, though its copy-protection is still as unforgiving as that of the earlier version, and it is available for [[Microsoft Windows]] only. See "Miscellanea", below, for further details.

Now that the text of the dictionary was digitized and online, it could also be published on [[CD-ROM]]. The text of the First Edition was made available in 1988. Afterward, three versions of the second edition were issued. Version 1 (1992) was identical in content to the printed Second Edition, and the CD itself was not copy-protected. Version 2 (1999) had some additions to the corpus, and updated software with improved searching features, but had clumsy copy-protection that made it difficult to use and would even cause the program to deny use to OUP staff in the middle of demonstrations of the product. Version 3 (2002) has additional words and software improvements, though its copy-protection is still as unforgiving as that of the earlier version, and it is available for [[Microsoft Windows]] only. See "Miscellanea", below, for further details.

Single-click access to Oxford dictionaries is also available with [[Babylon translator|Babylon Translator]], which provides access to the Concise Oxford English Dictionary and Thesaurus with 240,000 definitions and 365,000 synonyms and antonyms.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.babylon.com/display.php?id=227&tree=5&level=3|title=Babylon Translator}}</ref>

Single-click access to Oxford dictionaries is also available with [[Babylon translator|Babylon Translator]], which provides access to the Concise Oxford English Dictionary and Thesaurus with 240,000 definitions and 365,000 synonyms and antonyms.[https://www.babylon.com/display.php?id=227&tree]

 

On [[March 14]], [[2000]], the '''Oxford English Dictionary Online''' ('''OED Online''') became available to subscribers.<ref>{{cite journal | author = Juliet New | date = [[March 22]], [[2000]] | title = 'The world's greatest dictionary' goes online | journal = Ariadne | issue = 23 | issn = 1361-3200 | url = http://www.ariadne.ac.uk/issue23/oed-online/ | accessdate = 2007-03-18}},</ref> The online database contains the entire ''OED2'' and is updated quarterly with revisions that will be included in the ''OED3'' (see below). The online edition is the most up-to-date one available.

On [[March 14]], [[2000]], the '''Oxford English Dictionary Online''' ('''OED Online''') became available to subscribers.'The world's greatest dictionary' goes online[https://www.ariadne.ac.uk/issue23/oed-online/ ] The online database contains the entire ''OED2'' and is updated quarterly with revisions that will be included in the ''OED3'' (see below). The online edition is the most up-to-date one available.

As the price for an individual to use this edition, even after a reduction in 2004, is £195 or $295 US every year, most subscribers are large organizations such as universities. Some of them do not use the Oxford English Dictionary Online portal and have legally downloaded the entire database into their organization's computers. Some public libraries and companies have subscribed as well, including, in March and April 2006, most public libraries in England and Wales<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.oup.com/online/englishpubliclibraries/|title=Oxford Online in English Public Libraries}}</ref> and New Zealand;<ref>{{cite web|url=http://epic.org.nz/nl/Procurement.html|title=New Zealand procurement}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://epic.org.nz/nl/oup.html#oed|title=OED on-line New Zealand}}</ref> any person belonging to a library subscribing to the service is able to use the service from their own home.

As the price for an individual to use this edition, even after a reduction in 2004, is £195 or $295 US every year, most subscribers are large organizations such as universities. Some of them do not use the Oxford English Dictionary Online portal and have legally downloaded the entire database into their organization's computers. Some public libraries and companies have subscribed as well, including, in March and April 2006, most public libraries in England and Wales [https://www.oup.com/online/englishpubliclibraries/] and New Zealand;[https://epic.org.nz/nl/Procurement.html] [https://epic.org.nz/nl/oup.html#oed] any person belonging to a library subscribing to the service is able to use the service from their own home.

Another method of payment was also introduced in 2004, offering residents of North or South America the opportunity to pay $29.95 US a month to access the online site.

Another method of payment was also introduced in 2004, offering residents of North or South America the opportunity to pay $29.95 US a month to access the online site.

===Third Edition===

===Third Edition===

The planned Third Edition, or '''OED3''', is intended as a nearly complete overhaul of the work. Each word is being examined and revised to improve the accuracy of the definitions, derivations, pronunciations, and historical quotations—a task requiring the efforts of a staff consisting of more than 300 scholars, researchers, readers, and consultants, and projected to cost about $55 million. The end result is expected to double the overall length of the text. The style of the dictionary will also be changing slightly. The original text was more literary, in that most of the quotations were taken from novels, plays, and other literary sources. The new edition, however, will reference all manners of printed resources, such as cookbooks, wills, technical manuals, specialist journals, and rock lyrics. The pace of inclusion of new words has been increased to the rate of about 4,000 a year. The estimated date of completion is 2037.[http://cogscilibrarian.blogspot.com/2007/08/from-unregistered-words-to-oed3.html] From Unregistered Words to OED3]." (History of the Oxford English Dictionary[http://www.tvo.org/podcasts/bi/audio/BISimonWinchester052707.mp3])

The planned Third Edition, or '''OED3''', is intended as a nearly complete overhaul of the work. Each word is being examined and revised to improve the accuracy of the definitions, derivations, pronunciations, and historical quotations—a task requiring the efforts of a staff consisting of more than 300 scholars, researchers, readers, and consultants, and projected to cost about $55 million. The end result is expected to double the overall length of the text. The style of the dictionary will also be changing slightly. The original text was more literary, in that most of the quotations were taken from novels, plays, and other literary sources. The new edition, however, will reference all manners of printed resources, such as cookbooks, wills, technical manuals, specialist journals, and rock lyrics. The pace of inclusion of new words has been increased to the rate of about 4,000 a year. The estimated date of completion is 2037.[https://cogscilibrarian.blogspot.com/2007/08/from-unregistered-words-to-oed3.html] From Unregistered Words to OED3]." (History of the Oxford English Dictionary[https://www.tvo.org/podcasts/bi/audio/BISimonWinchester052707.mp3])

New content can be viewed through the OED Online or on the periodically updated CD-ROM edition. It is possible that the ''OED3'' will never be printed conventionally, but will be available only electronically. That will be a decision for the future, when it is nearer completion.

New content can be viewed through the OED Online or on the periodically updated CD-ROM edition. It is possible that the ''OED3'' will never be printed conventionally, but will be available only electronically. That will be a decision for the future, when it is nearer completion.

As of 1993, [[John Simpson (lexicographer)|John Simpson]] is the Chief Editor. Since the first work by each editor tends to require more revision than his later, more polished work, it was decided to balance out this effect by performing the early, and perhaps itself less polished, work of this revision pass at a letter other than '''A'''. Accordingly, the main work of the ''OED3'' has been proceeding in sequence from the letter '''M'''. When the OED Online was launched in March 2000, it included the first batch of revised entries (officially described as draft entries), stretching from '''M''' to '''mahurat''', and successive sections of text have since been released on a quarterly basis; by December 2007, the revised section had reached '''quit shilling'''. As new work is done on words in other parts of the alphabet, this is also included in each quarterly release.

As of 1993, [[John Simpson (lexicographer)|John Simpson]] is the Chief Editor. Since the first work by each editor tends to require more revision than his later, more polished work, it was decided to balance out this effect by performing the early, and perhaps itself less polished, work of this revision pass at a letter other than '''A'''. Accordingly, the main work of the ''OED3'' has been proceeding in sequence from the letter '''M'''. When the OED Online was launched in March 2000, it included the first batch of revised entries (officially described as draft entries), stretching from '''M''' to '''mahurat''', and successive sections of text have since been released on a quarterly basis; by December 2007, the revised section had reached '''quit shilling'''. As new work is done on words in other parts of the alphabet, this is also included in each quarterly release.

The production of the new edition takes full advantage of computers, particularly since the June 2005 inauguration of the whimsically named "Perfect [[musical film|All-Singing All-Dancing]] [[text editor|Editorial]] and [[annotation|Notation]] [[application software|Application]]", or "Pasadena." With this [[XML]]-based system, the attention of lexicographers can be directed more to matters of content than to presentation issues such as the numbering of definitions. The new system has also simplified the use of the quotations database, and enabled staff in New York to work directly on the Dictionary in the same way as their Oxford-based counterparts.(Pasadena: A Brand New System for the ''OED''[http://oed.com/pdfs/oed-news-2005-12.pdf])

The production of the new edition takes full advantage of computers, particularly since the June 2005 inauguration of the whimsically named "Perfect [[musical film|All-Singing All-Dancing]] [[text editor|Editorial]] and [[annotation|Notation]] [[application software|Application]]", or "Pasadena." With this [[XML]]-based system, the attention of lexicographers can be directed more to matters of content than to presentation issues such as the numbering of definitions. The new system has also simplified the use of the quotations database, and enabled staff in New York to work directly on the Dictionary in the same way as their Oxford-based counterparts.(Pasadena: A Brand New System for the ''OED''[https://oed.com/pdfs/oed-news-2005-12.pdf])

Other important computer uses include internet searches for evidence of current usage, and e-mail submissions of quotations by readers and the general public.

Other important computer uses include internet searches for evidence of current usage, and e-mail submissions of quotations by readers and the general public.

==Spelling==

==Spelling==

The OED lists British headword spellings (e.g. ''labour'', ''centre'') with variants following (''labor'', ''center'', etc.). For the suffix more commonly spelt <!-- spelt: British spelling of participle --> ''-ise'' in British English, [[OUP]] policy dictates a preference for the spelling ''-ize'', e.g. ''realize'' vs ''realise'' and ''globalization'' vs ''globalisation''. The rationale is partly linguistic, that the English suffix mainly derives from the Greek suffix ''-ιζειν'', (''-izo''), or the Latin ''-izāre''; however, ''-ze'' is also an Americanism in the fact that the ''-ze'' suffix has crept into words where it did not originally belong, as with ''analyse'' (British English), which is spelt ''analyze'' in American English [http://www.askoxford.com/asktheexperts/faq/aboutspelling/ize?view=get]. See also ''-ise / -ize'' at [[American and British English spelling differences#-ise / -ize|American and British English spelling differences]].

The OED lists British headword spellings (e.g. ''labour'', ''centre'') with variants following (''labor'', ''center'', etc.). For the suffix more commonly spelt <!-- spelt: British spelling of participle --> ''-ise'' in British English, [[OUP]] policy dictates a preference for the spelling ''-ize'', e.g. ''realize'' vs ''realise'' and ''globalization'' vs ''globalisation''. The rationale is partly linguistic, that the English suffix mainly derives from the Greek suffix ''-ιζειν'', (''-izo''), or the Latin ''-izāre''; however, ''-ze'' is also an Americanism in the fact that the ''-ze'' suffix has crept into words where it did not originally belong, as with ''analyse'' (British English), which is spelt ''analyze'' in American English [https://www.askoxford.com/asktheexperts/faq/aboutspelling/ize?view=get]. See also ''-ise / -ize'' at [[American and British English spelling differences#-ise / -ize|American and British English spelling differences]].

The sentence "The group analysed labour statistics published by the organization" is an example of OUP practice. This spelling (indicated with the registered [[Internet Assigned Numbers Authority|IANA]] language tag '''en-GB-oed''') is used by the [[United Nations]], the [[World Trade Organization]], the [[International Organization for Standardization]], and many British academic publications, such as ''[[Nature (journal)|Nature]]'', the ''[[Biochemical Journal]]'', and ''[[The Times Literary Supplement]]''.

The sentence "The group analysed labour statistics published by the organization" is an example of OUP practice. This spelling (indicated with the registered [[Internet Assigned Numbers Authority|IANA]] language tag '''en-GB-oed''') is used by the [[United Nations]], the [[World Trade Organization]], the [[International Organization for Standardization]], and many British academic publications, such as ''[[Nature (journal)|Nature]]'', the ''[[Biochemical Journal]]'', and ''[[The Times Literary Supplement]]''.

* [[William Chester Minor|Dr. W. C. Minor]] was one of the most prolific early contributors as a reader. Whilst imprisoned in a criminal lunatic asylum, he invented his own quotation-tracking system, so that he could then submit his slips upon the editors' request.

* [[William Chester Minor|Dr. W. C. Minor]] was one of the most prolific early contributors as a reader. Whilst imprisoned in a criminal lunatic asylum, he invented his own quotation-tracking system, so that he could then submit his slips upon the editors' request.

* [[Tim Bray]], co-creator of the Extensible Markup Language ([[XML]]), credits the OED as the developing inspiration of that web language.

* [[Tim Bray]], co-creator of the Extensible Markup Language ([[XML]]), credits the OED as the developing inspiration of that web language.

* The longest entry in the OED2 was for the verb ''set'', which required 60,000 words to describe some 430 senses. As entries began to be revised for the OED3 in sequence starting from M, the longest entry became ''make'' in 2000, then ''put'' in 2007.[http://www.oed.com/news/updates/revisions0712.html]  ''Set'' is expected to regain its place as the longest entry once it too is revised.

* The longest entry in the OED2 was for the verb ''set'', which required 60,000 words to describe some 430 senses. As entries began to be revised for the OED3 in sequence starting from M, the longest entry became ''make'' in 2000, then ''put'' in 2007.[https://www.oed.com/news/updates/revisions0712.html]  ''Set'' is expected to regain its place as the longest entry once it too is revised.

* It would take a person 120 years to type the 59 million words of the OED second edition and 60 years to proofread it, and 540 [[Megabyte|MB]] to electronically store it. [http://oed.com/about/facts.html]

* It would take a person 120 years to type the 59 million words of the OED second edition and 60 years to proofread it, and 540 [[Megabyte|MB]] to electronically store it. [https://oed.com/about/facts.html]

* The British quiz show ''[[Countdown (game show)|Countdown]]'' has awarded the leather-bound complete version to the [[List of Countdown champions|champions of each series]] since its inception in 1982.

* The British quiz show ''[[Countdown (game show)|Countdown]]'' has awarded the leather-bound complete version to the [[List of Countdown champions|champions of each series]] since its inception in 1982.

* The taboo words ''[[fuck]]'' and ''[[cunt]]'' did not appear in any general English dictionary between 1795 and 1965; they first appeared in the OED in 1972.

* The taboo words ''[[fuck]]'' and ''[[cunt]]'' did not appear in any general English dictionary between 1795 and 1965; they first appeared in the OED in 1972.

==References==

==References==

*  [http://www.free-babylon.com/ Free-Babylon web site]

*  [https://www.free-babylon.com/ Free-Babylon web site]

==Further reading==

==Further reading==

==External links==

==External links==

*The [http://www.oed.com/ Oxford English Dictionary's official website]

*The [https://www.oed.com/ Oxford English Dictionary's official website]

**Their [http://oed.com/archive/ Archive of documents] (as page images), which includes [[Richard Chenevix Trench|Trench's]] original "Deficiencies in our English Dictionaries" [http://dictionary.oed.com/archive/paper-deficiencies/] paper and [[James Murray (lexicographer)|Murray's]] original appeal for readers [http://dictionary.oed.com/archive/appeal-1879-04/]

**Their [https://oed.com/archive/ Archive of documents] (as page images), which includes [[Richard Chenevix Trench|Trench's]] original "Deficiencies in our English Dictionaries" [https://dictionary.oed.com/archive/paper-deficiencies/] paper and [[James Murray (lexicographer)|Murray's]] original appeal for readers [https://dictionary.oed.com/archive/appeal-1879-04/]

**Their [http://oed.com/about/facts.html page of OED statistics], and [http://www.askoxford.com/worldofwords/oed/facts/ another such page].

**Their [https://oed.com/about/facts.html page of OED statistics], and [https://www.askoxford.com/worldofwords/oed/facts/ another such page].

**Two [http://www.oup.co.uk/pdf/0-19-861186-2.pdf sample pages] from the OED.

**Two [https://www.oup.co.uk/pdf/0-19-861186-2.pdf sample pages] from the OED.

**Their page on [http://dictionary.oed.com/about/contributors/tolkien.html Tolkien]

**Their page on [https://dictionary.oed.com/about/contributors/tolkien.html Tolkien]

**[http://www.askoxford.com/dictionaries/?view=uk AskOxford Compact Oxford English Dictionary Search]

**[https://www.askoxford.com/dictionaries/?view=uk AskOxford Compact Oxford English Dictionary Search]

*[http://oed.hertford.ox.ac.uk/main/ Examining the OED]: Charlotte Brewer's analysis of the principles and practices used by OED editors

*[https://oed.hertford.ox.ac.uk/main/ Examining the OED]: Charlotte Brewer's analysis of the principles and practices used by OED editors

*[http://around.com/oed.html The OED Meets Cyberspace]: [[James Gleick]]'s 2006 article.

*[https://around.com/oed.html The OED Meets Cyberspace]: [[James Gleick]]'s 2006 article.

*''The New English Dictionary on Historical Principles'' is available for download from the [[Internet Archive]]:

*''The New English Dictionary on Historical Principles'' is available for download from the [[Internet Archive]]:

**Volume 1: [http://www.archive.org/details/oedvol01 Complete]

**Volume 1: [https://www.archive.org/details/oedvol01 Complete]

**Volume 2: [http://www.archive.org/details/oedvol02 Complete]

**Volume 2: [https://www.archive.org/details/oedvol02 Complete]

**Volume 3: [http://www.archive.org/details/oed03arch Complete]

**Volume 3: [https://www.archive.org/details/oed03arch Complete]

**Volume 4: [http://www.archive.org/details/oed04arch Complete]

**Volume 4: [https://www.archive.org/details/oed04arch Complete]

**Volume 5: [http://www.archive.org/details/oedvol05 Complete]

**Volume 5: [https://www.archive.org/details/oedvol05 Complete]

**Volume 6: [http://www.archive.org/details/oed6aarch Part 1] [http://www.archive.org/details/oed6barch Part 2]

**Volume 6: [https://www.archive.org/details/oed6aarch Part 1] [https://www.archive.org/details/oed6barch Part 2]

**Volume 7: [http://www.archive.org/details/oed07arch Complete]

**Volume 7: [https://www.archive.org/details/oed07arch Complete]

**Volume 8: [http://www.archive.org/details/oed8aarch Part 1] [http://www.archive.org/details/oed8barch Part 2]

**Volume 8: [https://www.archive.org/details/oed8aarch Part 1] [https://www.archive.org/details/oed8barch Part 2]

**Volume 9: [http://www.archive.org/details/oed9aarch Part 1] [http://www.archive.org/details/oed9barch Part 2]

**Volume 9: [https://www.archive.org/details/oed9aarch Part 1] [https://www.archive.org/details/oed9barch Part 2]

**Volume 10: [http://www.archive.org/details/oedxaarch Part 1] [http://www.archive.org/details/oedxbarch Part 2]

**Volume 10: [https://www.archive.org/details/oedxaarch Part 1] [https://www.archive.org/details/oedxbarch Part 2]

===Podcast===

===Podcast===

*History of the Oxford English Dictionary [http://www.tvo.org/podcasts/bi/audio/BISimonWinchester052707.mp3]  

*History of the Oxford English Dictionary [https://www.tvo.org/podcasts/bi/audio/BISimonWinchester052707.mp3]  

[[Category: General Reference]]

[[Category: General Reference]]

[[Category: Languages and Literature]]

[[Category: Languages and Literature]]