HOW TO USE THE DICTIONARY
To look up an entry in The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, use the search window above. For best results, after typing in the word, click on the “Search” button instead of using the “enter” key.
Some compound words (like bus rapid transit, dog whistle, or identity theft) don’t appear on the drop-down list when you type them in the search bar. For best results with compound words, place a quotation mark before the compound word in the search window.
THE USAGE PANEL
The Usage Panel is a group of nearly 200 prominent scholars, creative writers, journalists, diplomats, and others in occupations requiring mastery of language. Annual surveys have gauged the acceptability of particular usages and grammatical constructions.
AMERICAN HERITAGE DICTIONARY APP
The new American Heritage Dictionary app is now available for iOS and Android.
THE AMERICAN HERITAGE DICTIONARY BLOG
The articles in our blog examine new words, revised definitions, interesting images from the fifth edition, discussions of usage, and more.
INTERESTED IN DICTIONARIES?
Check out the Dictionary Society of North America at http://www.dictionarysociety.com
n. 1. A group of things of the same kind that belong together and are so used: a chess set. 2. A group of persons sharing a common interest: the high-school set. 3. A group of books or periodicals published as a unit. 4. a. A number of couples required for participation in a square dance. b. The movements constituting a square dance. 5. a. The scenery constructed for a theatrical performance. b. The entire enclosure in which a movie is filmed; the sound stage. 6. Music a. A session of music, typically dance music, played before an intermission. b. The music so played. 7. The collective receiving apparatus assembled to operate a radio or television. 8. Mathematics A collection of distinct elements having specific common properties: a set of positive integers. 9. Sports a. A group of games constituting one division or unit of a match, as in tennis. b. An offensive formation in football or basketball. [Middle English sette, from Old French, from Medieval Latin secta, retinue, from Latin, faction; see SECT.] |
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.
