Rating: 
Summary: I like this dictionary!
Review: I'll be short. This dictionary gives Indo-European roots for a lot of English terms. I find these Indo-European roots fascinating. Why are others not following along here? Can you imagine a dictionary of (say) Persian, which also gave etymologies and traced words all the way back to Indo-European?But then again I'm a word-history nut. :-) Other aspects of this dictionary are excellent. I supplement it with the two-volume OED. I'd like to have the Merriam-Webster unabridged. But this one is a real honey! Highest recommendation!!
Rating: 
Summary: John Nemerovski MyMac.com Book Review
Review: It is the biggest, heaviest, most lengthy and expensive volume ever to be considered for Book Bytes. The Fourth Edition has become an indispensable member of our literary family here. We adore the dictionary and use it every day. What it isn't should not be faulted, because what it is makes it so valuable, in addition to more than 200,000 well-worded definitions: loaded with thousands of color images, located in outside margin columns, pertinent to several of the citations on any given page;full of extensive supplementary usage notes, word histories, and synonyms for special words on most pages; really easy on the eyeballs, with well-conceived typography;contemporary in its use of language and colloquial words defined, such as: "shopaholic," "mu shu," "digerati," and thousands more from science and technology to food and pop culture;genuine commitment to providing extensive biographical and geographical entries. You can lose yourself for hours with this dictionary, and enjoy every moment of the experience. Although it is geared for students of all ages, every reader will benefit from having this backbreaking blockbuster on your bookshelf. Any gripes? Yes: the included CD is Windows only, leading to one demerit in our rating. If you are a Windozer or run Virtual PC, your opinion of The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition may be even higher than mine. Whatever your computer operating system, your cranial OS will be current to "version XYZABC" at the very least with this hardbound giant of brainware in your life. Every so often a bonus page appears such as one with illustrating COLOR, with visible spectrum, additive and subtractive primary colors, and color diagrams. on page 365. A margin's illustrations can yield some fascinating neighbors, such as Pablo Picasso, Piccadilly Circus, pickax, and picket fence on page 1327. And on and on and on. I give it Rating: 4 out of 5 John Nemerovski
Rating:
Summary: Curious omissions mar an otherwise good effort
Review: Overall, I have been favorably impressed with "The American Heritage Dictionary," fourth edition (paperback). At under 1,000 pages, it strikes a good balance between compactness and comprehensiveness. But on closer look, I found some faults. The dictionary's good points are plainly visible. It has an easy-on-the eyes arrangement. There are many good illustrative photographs. There are brief biographical and geographical entries interspersed among the general entries. Now for the drawbacks. First: Where are the cuss words? That might seem like an odd criticism, but slang and vulgar words ARE a part of the English language--a part which, furthermore, often turns up in works of literature. I see no justification for leaving out the notorious "f-word" and its colorful brethren. The dictionary is also oddly inconsistent in noting that some "acceptable" words also have uses as vulgar slang. Yes, the compilers note that "bitch" has a rude meaning in addition to its proper definition. But they fail to provide similar data for many comparable terms. I also noted another curious flaw: the definitions of certain words derived from people's names (Kafkaesque, Wagnerian, etc.) are not given at all. These words are just tacked on as undefined appendages to the brief biographical entries. So if someone tells you that their life is a Kafkaesque nightmare and you don't know what they mean, this dictionary will be useless to you. I just recently purchased this dictionary, but my early inspection of the product has certainly left me with some doubts. Hopefully the next edition will correct these problems, and other flaws that my fellow users discover.
Rating:
Summary: Curious omissions mar an otherwise good effort
Review: Overall, I have been favorably impressed with "The American Heritage Dictionary," fourth edition (paperback). At under 1,000 pages, it strikes a good balance between compactness and comprehensiveness. But on closer look, I found some faults. The dictionary's good points are plainly visible. It has an easy-on-the eyes arrangement. There are many good illustrative photographs. There are brief biographical and geographical entries interspersed among the general entries. Now for the drawbacks. First: Where are the cuss words? That might seem like an odd criticism, but slang and vulgar words ARE a part of the English language--a part which, furthermore, often turns up in works of literature. I see no justification for leaving out the notorious "f-word" and its colorful brethren. The dictionary is also oddly inconsistent in noting that some "acceptable" words also have uses as vulgar slang. Yes, the compilers note that "bitch" has a rude meaning in addition to its proper definition. But they fail to provide similar data for many comparable terms. I also noted another curious flaw: the definitions of certain words derived from people's names (Kafkaesque, Wagnerian, etc.) are not given at all. These words are just tacked on as undefined appendages to the brief biographical entries. So if someone tells you that their life is a Kafkaesque nightmare and you don't know what they mean, this dictionary will be useless to you. I just recently purchased this dictionary, but my early inspection of the product has certainly left me with some doubts. Hopefully the next edition will correct these problems, and other flaws that my fellow users discover.
Rating:
Summary: An All Around Good Dictionary
Review: The American Heritage Dictionary is a good dictionary. It is around the complexity level of the Oxford American, but contains derivations and a very comprehensive biographical section that is quite useful. I found this dictionary to be a very useful source reference for the definitions of words, and quite direct in conveying the meaning. A good all around dictionary, and I highly recommend everyone get a copy for their home and office.
Rating: 
Summary: You should expect this under researched, flawed junk from AH
Review: The dictionary is a waste of money considering you can purchase a much better, thourough, and well researched and intelligent dictionary from Oxford. Get the New Oxford American Dictionary instead.
Rating:
Summary: Journying through the English Language -- AHD 4th Edition
Review: The Fourth Edition of the American Heritage Dictionary has preserved all the best features of the Third Edition -- and the illustrations are now in color! While it is easier to look up words on a CD-ROM, it is worth buying the book, too, because readers can find much interesting information browsing through it. Everywhere, there are interesting word histories, usage notes, notes on regional usages and notes on recent changes in the English language. An appendix with Indo-European roots, while somewhat technical, provides a wealth of interesting information. Readers can learn, for instance, that a commonly-used obscenity is derived from the same Indo-European root as the word "science." The new edition has added an index of roots from the Semitic languages which have found their way into English, including in the names of people in the Bible. The many features of this dictionary make it more than just an ordinary reference book. It can provide many hours of pleasure wandering through its pages.
Rating:
Summary: More American than English
Review: The key word in the title "American Heritage Dictionary" is American. This is a parochial and biased dictionary aimed at the American audience, and cannot be considered a definitve dictionary of the English language. For example, it calls "colour" a variant of "color" - when in fact the American spelling is the variant. It also attempts to be a mini-encyclopedia, with miniscule biographies of mostly American personalities, illustrations and photographs and little tidbits of information. This diffuses the work, rather than complements it. What it lacks in etymology and usage, it tries to make up in presentation. The result is disappointing. As a dictionary, it lacks the substance and authority of either Oxford or Merriam Webster. On the plus side, it is reasonably "up to date," and has some useful appendices. If you collect dictionaries, add it to your shelf as an intersting secondary source. Otherwise wait for a new Oxford for a truly definitive dictionary.
Rating:
Summary: Fine reference...
Review: This 4th edition is a valuable addition to any library (home, school, office, etc.). The book is somewhat of a tome (over 2000 pages) but is indeed a "user-friendly" reference, featuring color illustrations all throughout the book, and presenting definitions in a clear, interesting, and concise manner. Despite its superficial glitz, this is a quite serious dictionary, including copious material on word origins, history of the English language, and various other scholarly "extras". Besides The American Heritage Dictionary, I use Merriam-Webster's 10th & 11th Collegiate Dictionaries, Merriam-Webster's Third New International(unabridged), and both the Oxford New American Dictionary and the 2-volume Oxford Shorter Dictionary of the English Language. I recommend all of these (available on Amazon) and I find that they complement each other. Again, you won't go wrong in purchasing The American Heritage Dictionary, even if it is the only dictionary that you own.
Rating:
Summary: Fine reference...
Review: This 4th edition is a valuable addition to any library (home, school, office, etc.). The book is somewhat of a tome (over 2000 pages) but is indeed a "user-friendly" reference, featuring color illustrations all throughout the book, and presenting definitions in a clear, interesting, and concise manner. Despite its superficial glitz, this is a quite serious dictionary, including copious material on word origins, history of the English language, and various other scholarly "extras". Besides The American Heritage Dictionary, I use Merriam-Webster's 10th & 11th Collegiate Dictionaries, Merriam-Webster's Third New International(unabridged), and both the Oxford New American Dictionary and the 2-volume Oxford Shorter Dictionary of the English Language. I recommend all of these (available on Amazon) and I find that they complement each other. Again, you won't go wrong in purchasing The American Heritage Dictionary, even if it is the only dictionary that you own.
| 
