National Dictionary Day October 16th

On October 16, 1758, Noah Webster was born in Hartford, Connecticut. Very few people went to college in Webster’s day, but he loved learning. So much so that his family chose to send him to Yale in 1774 when he was just 16 years old. He graduated in 1778. Webster could not afford to continue on to study law, so he chose to become a teacher.

Webster was unhappy with the books that were used in American schools as they came from England and spoke often of allegiance to King George. Webster wanted students to learn from American books so he worte one himself. In 1783 Webster penned A Grammatical Institute of the English Language. It became to most popular book of its time and taught people how to read, how to pronounce words, and how to spell.

Webster began working on the first American dictionary in 1801. He defined and spelled words the way Americans used them rather than the way they were used and spelled in England. He added new words that were commonly used in America and published his first edition, A Compendious Dictionary of the English Language, in 1806. It contained roughly 37,000 American words. Twenty-two years later at the age of 70, Noah Webster published the American Dictionary of the English Language. It defined more than 65,000 words.

It’s no surprise that we celebrate National Dictionary Day on the birthday of the Father of the Dictionary. So today, play a few word games and learn the definitions of a few new words in honor of Noah Webster. Here are a few ways to learn more about words and Noah Webster:

Noah Webster Kids Corner: Activities and Fact Sheets

Word Games and Quizzes from Merriam-Webster

Here are some great books for word lovers and a fantastic illustrated dictionary for kids!

Happy Dictionary Day!

Source: https://www.noahwebsterhouse.org/

What is your favorite word from the dictionary?