1. Origin or history of the word
Using the Dictionary
Guide words
Entry word
Syllabification
Pronunciation
Parts of speech
Origin or history of the word
The definition
Synonyms and antonyms

2. 1. Guide words
Words found on top of the page (left and right) to indicate which words are found on that page.
What are the guide words for: study
What are the guide words for: teacher

3. 2. Entry word
It is the word itself in bold print and divided into syllables.

4. 3. Syllabification
Word divided into syllables by dots (in most dictionaries). Be careful not to confuse dots with hyphens.
- fes●ti●vi●ty : dots for division of syllables
- Fleur-de-lis: hyphens to show a compound word

5. 4. Pronunciation
The way the word should be pronounced. You can find the sounds for each symbol at the beginning of the dictionary, under pronunciation key.
- flipper: (flĭp΄әr)
- school: (skōōl)

6. 5. Parts of speech This is found after the pronunciation. - noun, n.
- pronoun, pron.
- verb, v.
- adjective, adj.
- adverb, adv.
- conjunction, conj.
- preposition, prep.
- interjection, inter.

7. 6. Origin or history of the word
[OFr.] – Old French
[OE] – Old English
[Lat.] – Latin
[Gk.] – Greek
[Am. E.] – American English
[Can. Fr.] – Canadian French

8. 7. The definition
The meaning of the word itself. Be careful, some words can have more than one meaning.
Example: bat

9. 8. Synonyms and Antonyms Synonym, syn. – same
Ex. beautiful = attractive
Antonym, ant. – opposite
Ex. sweet ≠ sour