A visual dictionary for grownups too
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filament: Very thin metal wire, usually made of tungsten, emitting light rays when an electric current passes through it.
Picture books and pictorial dictionaries are handy for giving visual representations and dictionary definitions of words. They are great for preschoolers and elementary school pupils to browse through them or to lookup definitions and illustrations of words.
For older kids and adults, these books are less useful. Sometimes you know what an object or a part of an object is but you don’t know what it is called. Merriam-Webster’s (m-w) Visual Dictionary Online can help.
When you visit the Merriam-Webster’s Visual Dictionary Online, you’ll see the familiar Search Box to enter your search word. Don’t use it. It is more fun to drill down through the provided visual paths to find exactly what you’re looking for. These paths are hierarchically organized in over a dozen categories; m-w calls them themes. Choose from themes like Astronomy, Human Being, Communications, Energy, Sports and Games.
Using my mouse, I clicked on illustrations and drilled down House – Electricity – Lighting – Incandescent Lamp to finally see the graphic above and learn that the illuminated thin metal wire in a bulb is called the filament. Clicking on the speaker icons next to terms in the dictionary will let you hear their pronunciations.
Merriam-Webster claims 20,000 terms and 6,000 full-color images in the Visual Dictionary Online. Chances are you’ll find what you’re looking for.
