Books

London: printed by W. & A. Strahan; for W. Strahan, J. F. & C. Rivington, L. Davis, T. Payne & Son, W. Owen [and 21 others], 1784. Fifth edition, the last to be issued in Johnson's lifetime, and the last of the proprietors' folio editions; 2 volumes, folio, titles printed in red and black, lexicon in double column; full contemporary mottled calf, red and black morocco labels on gilt spines; scuffed and rubbed, upper joint on vol. 2 cracked, cords holding, title page in volume II with 2 creases. The Johnsonian scholar Gwin Kolb's copy, with his book label laid in. This is the only reprinting of the corrected fourth edition issued in Johnson's lifetime, and it is the last of the two-volume folio editions. One thousand copies were printed. The sixth edition (issued in weekly numbers and in 2 vols. quarto) and the seventh edition (issued in 1 volume folio) were issued in 1785 immediately following Johnson's death to compete with rival editions from James Harrison and James Fielding (see…

Samuel Johnson's 'A Dictionary of the English Language' is among the most influential dictionaries in the history of the English language. First published on 15 April 1755, the dictionary offered comprehensive definitions and illustrative examples of usage.