January 18, 2012 - Thesaurus Day

The word thesaurus looks like a dinosaur name,
doesn't it?

If you can't read it, the caption says, "Having great
vocabulary didn't save the thesaurus
from extinction / eradication / extirpation."

A thesaurus is an enormous list of words, categorized into synonyms and antonyms rather than listed alphabetically. In a published book, a thesaurus has an alphabetical list at the back that helps users find the word and other similar words. Nowadays many people use a Thesaurus function on their computers and word processing programs.

Why is today considered Thesaurus Day? Peter Mark Roget, who is famous for his thesaurus (compiled in 1805 and published in 1852, thereby the first modern thesaurus), was born on this day in 1779.

Use a thesaurus today!

Here are a few ideas for thesaurus projects. 

Here and here are two examples of an online thesaurus. Which is organized in the way you like best? Which has more synonyms for the word clean? /

Here are some thesaurus games you can play! 

Also on this date:

Winnie the Pooh Day 

April 29, 2010

Anniversary of Publication of Roget's Thesaurus (1852)

On this date in 1852, the first edition of an English-language thesaurus created by Dr. Peter Mark Roget was published. It included 15,000 words. Since that year, Roget's Thesaurus has never been out of print, and the words inside have steadily grown—with more than a quarter of a million words by now...

A thesaurus is a list of words organized by concept, with synonyms and sometimes antonyms listed together. It is not a list with which writers and students can simply swap words, because often the meanings or the feeling-tones (in other words, the definitions and the connotations) of various words are different. People using a thesaurus can browse a list looking for just the right word.


Here's an example: in one section of Roget's Thesaurus we find market, emporium, open air market, marketplace, flea market, auction room, street market, shop, store, depot, warehouse, bazaar, trading post, arcade, trading center, department store, chain store, trade fair, exchange, exhibition, boutique, supermarket, grocery store, superstore, cash and carry, convenience store, stall, booth, stand, corner shop, kiosk, newsstand, counter, vending machine, shopping center...
Each of these words has a particular meaning and tone. A J.C.Penny's isn't a boutique or kiosk, and the tiny floral shop on the corner isn't a grocery store or trading post.

Dr. Roget started his word list in 1805, two years before Daniel Webster started writing his dictionary. Dr. Roget used his list privately for almost 50 years before publishing it. He lived a long life (until age 90!) and was able to see his work through 28 printings (and, of course, there have been many, many more since then).

Rate the following words for their connotation.
Which one is more positive (or less negative) than the other?

• Slim....skinny
• Obese...sturdy
• Immature...young
• Timid...cautious
• Communicative...babbling
• Gossipy...newsy
• Fanciful...untrue
• Precise...fastidious
• Deceptive...unrealistic
• Idiotic...foolish

My Answers: I think that these words are more positive (less negative): slim, sturdy, young, cautious, communicative, newsy, fanciful, precise, unrealistic, foolish. Do you agree?

BrainPop has some activities about synonyms and antonyms.