Books

London: printed by W. Strahan, for A. Millar, T. Longman, J. Dodsley, W. Strahan, J. Rivington, [& 15 others in London],, 1765. The third edition, in contemporary reversed calf Third edition of the most famous of all dictionaries, following the first edition of 1755, in the same imposing double-folio format as its predecessor. The creation of the dictionary was Johnson's greatest literary labour. Helped by a succession of needy amanuenses who worked in the surprisingly spacious garret of his house in Gough Square, he experienced the death of his wife and underwent agonies of procrastination before finally completing the task in his 46th year. As his use of 114,000 illustrative quotations shows, Johnson clearly intended to combine lexicography with entertainment and instruction. It was always to be called "Johnson's Dictionary", and the national pride taken in the project was expressed by the poet Christopher Smart when he wrote in the Universel Visitor: "I look upon [it] with…

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.