resources - English synonym online database?


Is there a good english synonym database available in the Internet? I imagine that it should work like a translator: you enter a word and synonyms for this word are displayed.


The reason for asking this: I'm not a native English speaker but I have to write a lot of text in English. I noticed that I tend to use always the same expressions and I think it would be a good thing to for example not always use “that's why” but sometimes “therefore”.



Answer



Google has many results for such a query, though quality sites may be buried under other sites that are better marketed (or more engaged in search engine optimisation).


One main remark: what you are looking for (listings of synonyms and related words) is called a thesaurus (plural: thesauri or thesauruses).


Now, for the sites themselves, I myself am quite fond of:



  • The Merriam-Webster thesaurus

  • The French CNRS online synonym database, which is part of a larger semantic atlas worth exploring:

  • If you own a Mac computer, the Dictionary application (available for free with the operating system) includes the Oxford American Writer’s Thesaurus, 2nd edition. I use it extensively.


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