The Dictionary of Difficult Words: With more than 400 perplexing words to test your wits!

My daughter (8) and I read one letter per night. We use the words to inspire story telling and conversation. I love the final entry for each letter that highlights one of the words. It might be a bit too heavy on "phobias" and obscure words that can't really be added to one's vocabulary, but it's still a must-get in my book. (BTW, I bought this after hearing an interview with the author on the Grammar Girl podcast.)

It's got big words. It's got little words. It's got funny words. It's got science words. It's got hilarious pictures. It's huge. It's colorful. It's undergone thorough testing on children, and they love it. Cats love it too. This book is wild sweet. Anyone who is a child or an adult will expand their command of the English language with this book.

The Dictionary of Difficult Words is such a gorgeous book. The illustrations are fantastic and the cover has a great texture with embossed letters. While the words may be difficult or rare, even to a thirty-something college-educated person, the definitions are super accessible and kids would have no problem picking them up. I love hunting for all the cats hidden (or not so hidden) throughout the book and finding new words to call my own cat (Pulchritudinous).

We got this book for Christmas and my 6 year old and I are LOVING it! We have so much fun giggling at the funny words featured in the in the book like spaghettification and flibbertigibbet as well as learning learning new words for common things like sternutation! It's been a great addition to our library and a wonderful book to get kids interested in language. This would be a great book to use in the classroom too!

My kids are not ones to pursue the dictionary, but this book absolutely! It is packed with fun and interesting words with the definitions and fun illustrations to go with them. What is a volcanologist? Exactly what is a kerfuffle? Your kids may come out of this with a better vocabulary than you. The vibrant illustrations in the book are a great way to get kids interested in the different words and make it engaging for young readers. Are your kids going to use all these words in everyday life? No. Are they going to gain an appreciation for a bit more of the english language, yes!

Love the “difficult words,” and the format of the book. It is just as lovely to read from start to finish as it is to simply open to any page and read. Great illustrations to accompany the definitions. Have played numerous word games and thought of new words we might add. Lovely, lovely book. My grandchildren are 10 and 6 and I have given it as a present to other children between those ages.

I thought the idea of these different words was really interesting and was looking forward to giving it to my grandchildren. However, I am appalled at the bad grammar and the excuse at the end of the book, that it is ok to use they a plural pronoun with a singular subject -someone. After all they has been used that was for 700 years. Pitiful. It could have all been changed in more than one way.

What a fun book! It’s filled with tons of interesting words you may or may not have heard of, so if words are your thing, you’re going to love it! The illustrations are charming with a delightful attention to detail. Can’t wait to get into my “snuggery” and read all about “clowders” and “turophiles”!

This is an absolutely delightful book. Our kids, 7 and 11, loved it at first sight and were still working some of the words into their own conversations hours after they put the book down. The definitions are clear and meant to be read aloud. Perfect timing with the Scripps National Spelling Bee coming up! Highly recommended.

I love this book. I love beautiful books and this one is no exception. The pages are gorgeous, the writing is eloquent, and the words and definitions are unique. We use this in our homeschool because you can never have enough words in your vocabulary.

My daughter (8) and I read one letter per night. We use the words to inspire story telling and conversation. I love the final entry for each letter that highlights one of the words. It might be a bit too heavy on "phobias" and obscure words that can't really be added to one's vocabulary, but it's still a must-get in my book. (BTW, I bought this after hearing an interview with the author on the Grammar Girl podcast.)

It's got big words. It's got little words. It's got funny words. It's got science words. It's got hilarious pictures. It's huge. It's colorful. It's undergone thorough testing on children, and they love it. Cats love it too. This book is wild sweet. Anyone who is a child or an adult will expand their command of the English language with this book.

The Dictionary of Difficult Words is such a gorgeous book. The illustrations are fantastic and the cover has a great texture with embossed letters. While the words may be difficult or rare, even to a thirty-something college-educated person, the definitions are super accessible and kids would have no problem picking them up. I love hunting for all the cats hidden (or not so hidden) throughout the book and finding new words to call my own cat (Pulchritudinous).

We got this book for Christmas and my 6 year old and I are LOVING it! We have so much fun giggling at the funny words featured in the in the book like spaghettification and flibbertigibbet as well as learning learning new words for common things like sternutation! It's been a great addition to our library and a wonderful book to get kids interested in language. This would be a great book to use in the classroom too!

My kids are not ones to pursue the dictionary, but this book absolutely! It is packed with fun and interesting words with the definitions and fun illustrations to go with them. What is a volcanologist? Exactly what is a kerfuffle? Your kids may come out of this with a better vocabulary than you. The vibrant illustrations in the book are a great way to get kids interested in the different words and make it engaging for young readers. Are your kids going to use all these words in everyday life? No. Are they going to gain an appreciation for a bit more of the english language, yes!

Love the “difficult words,” and the format of the book. It is just as lovely to read from start to finish as it is to simply open to any page and read. Great illustrations to accompany the definitions. Have played numerous word games and thought of new words we might add. Lovely, lovely book. My grandchildren are 10 and 6 and I have given it as a present to other children between those ages.

I thought the idea of these different words was really interesting and was looking forward to giving it to my grandchildren. However, I am appalled at the bad grammar and the excuse at the end of the book, that it is ok to use they a plural pronoun with a singular subject -someone. After all they has been used that was for 700 years. Pitiful. It could have all been changed in more than one way.

What a fun book! It’s filled with tons of interesting words you may or may not have heard of, so if words are your thing, you’re going to love it! The illustrations are charming with a delightful attention to detail. Can’t wait to get into my “snuggery” and read all about “clowders” and “turophiles”!

This is an absolutely delightful book. Our kids, 7 and 11, loved it at first sight and were still working some of the words into their own conversations hours after they put the book down. The definitions are clear and meant to be read aloud. Perfect timing with the Scripps National Spelling Bee coming up! Highly recommended.

I love this book. I love beautiful books and this one is no exception. The pages are gorgeous, the writing is eloquent, and the words and definitions are unique. We use this in our homeschool because you can never have enough words in your vocabulary.

What is fun about this book is that you can be open it to any page and you may find a new word (as well as old favorite words) and its definition. While I bought one copy for my grandkids, other adult family members enjoyed paging through it so much that I shall buy a few more copies to give as gifts.

This has an interesting collection of words and some whimsical art to accompany them. While it's a kids book, any home library should include this! I even learned a few new words, like cachinnate (to laugh loudly) and hippophile (a lover of horses). I highly recommend this book for anyone learning new words, or just wanting to expand their own vocabulary!

This is a cool book with lots of interesting words. I purchased it for my 11 year old nephew who is really good at spelling and is a pretty curious kid. He seemed to like it. I liked that there were words I was even unfamiliar with. The author definitely didn't "dumb down" and that keeps it interesting for more than just kids.

I bought another book in this theme and liked the other one better. This one is not as diverse. In it's layout.

It’s definitely a fun read for all ages, young and old, and is filled to great illustrations. You’ll certainly learn some new words, and it’s fun to work out what some of the definitions might be that you’re unsure of based on the illustrations. Highly recommended!

This is a must have! Very well done in all aspects. From the moment Amazon delivered it, we couldn't put it down. Buy this for every kid you know right this second! Grow their curiosity and vocabulary while inspiring some marvelous writing! We have been forever changed by this beautiful book.

My grandchildren loved this book. Many hours reading and off Technolgy

So awesome! I ordered one for the kids teacher and am ordering for a teacher friend of mine. Wonderful idea for birthday gift!

My nephew is a Smartie and his mom is an editor so you know he loves words! They both loved this book. It’s big and full of good info! Great gift!

Love it! Really fun book to help introduce some unusual and/or more advance words to your child’s (and your!) vocabulary. The illustrations are super fun. My 8 year old and I enjoy reading this together.

Very fun book!! My 9 and 6 year old love it.

I am a STROKE in aspect. Good Book

My grandson really got into reading books, and this really is a good one that he likes to flip through. Great illustrations and words to help his vocabulary grow.

My eight year old granddaughter had asked me several times to read and reread the book to her on the weekend I visited. Apparently she uses it now as her bedtime book as she reads to herself. I can't imagine a better recommendation!

My toddler loves riddles and learning complicated words and loves this book! She’s 4 years old.

I could not love this book any more!! I’m a total logophile.... this book is still by my bedside!

For the child who loves to read or talk! This book contains words of all shapes and sizes and meanings and is sure to be a family favorite.

I bought this for my 12 year old, but our whole family enjoys this book and loves to practice using new words!

Love it!

Nine year old granddaughter loves it.

It's an inspired collection of words that both teach and entertain. The illustrations add so much to its charm. The book deserves more than 5 stars!

Great book to get the grandkids interested in vocabulary. Heard about it from Grammar Girl podcast.

My 9 year old loved this books and all the amazing words in it. Her favorite present from Christmas 😍 go figure.

Great book to get students hooked on words.

Great book with lovely illustrations for us to understand and memorize the words

4★ “SESQUIPEDALIAN If someone is sesquipedalian, they know a lot of big words and they love using them.” This is fun and useful and a good conversation or game starter. You will no doubt find a word you didn’t know, but I will say that a few I didn’t know weren’t in Lexico, the Oxford Dictionary online, so I don’t feel so bad! I found them elsewhere as obsolete. Lots of simple words make the list. Here’s what a whole double page looks like. This one is about how words work. [First photo] The first page explains some parts of speech. [Sedond photo] The next one explains how to figure out meanings. [Third photo] Mostly they are good simple definitions and/or explanations of the word along with illustrations for many. I disagree with a few definitions, but really, who am I to complain? And I found a few terrific ones I can’t wait to use! KAKISTOCRACY – a government ruled by the worst people.” It kind of rhymes with aristocracy. How about that for a great word, eh? I expect to see it in political headlines any day now. One of my favourite punctuation marks makes the list. Interrobang ‽. It’s a combination of a question mark and an exclamation point that you use when you combine excitement with a question, like “Did I really win the lottery?!” I usually write it like that, one after the other, but there is html code for it. If you ever need it, without spaces, it’s & # 8 2 5 3 I was also unaware there is such a thing as the study of animals that people think might not be real (unicorns, mermaids, Nessie). That’s cryptozoology. They’ve been a part of so many stories forever that it seems nobody can say definitively that they aren’t or weren’t ever real. I’d just recommend you don’t try to hit anyone up for a grant to study them. But who knows‽ [Fourth photo]

This book is the #1 new release in children's dictionaries on Amazon. The cover itself is a sight to behold and very classy. It is a large hardback with an embossed title and beautiful texture. The illustrations are kid-friendly and fun. Each page displays multiple drawings or collages that adds much interest to the reader. Lists of words from A to Z are brilliantly presented by lexicographer Jane Solomon. Kids will love and appreciate the science, nature, feelings, emotions and language words that adorn the book. More than 400 difficult words to pronounce and spell are documented with easy to understand meanings that will intrigue both the young and the old alike. I know I bumped into many that I was not familiar with. This delightful book should not only be in every home but in every classroom and library. It would make a perfect year-end gift to give to a teacher. It truly is a celebration of words and our amazing language. Who knew learning big words could be so much fun? I highly, highly recommend this book.

Hellooooooo Gorgeous! I am so glad I purchased ‘The Dictionary of Difficult Words’ by Jane Solomon - even after receiving a free digital copy from NetGalley. This thing is large (as dictionaries should be) and so colorful! It will call out to children from the shelves and no one will need to convince them to open it. I know a lot of words - seems to be what happens when you’re an avid reader – and there was *at least* one word on every page that I did NOT know! But that’s what makes it fun, right! My boys and I laughed and laughed as we tried to pronounce words that no one in our house knew. (...never hurts to start ‘em young when building a strong vocabulary.) I also really appreciated that Solomon did such an effective job describing *how* to use a dictionary. Let’s be honest, folks... Most kids in this {digital} day and age basically just ask Alexa what a word means. Heck, all I have to do is touch a word on my Kindle or right-click on my laptop if I don’t know what something means. But she so beautifully explains that there is no wrong way to read this book, what the parts of speech mean, and how prefixes and suffixes can help figure out a word’s meaning. Fantastic idea for those new to these types of concepts... But don’t feel like this book is too serious and scholarly! Louise Lockhart, illustrator & living alliteration, has created a colorful, silly, and oh so appealing book for the younger set. From animals in arid climates to a redonk zedonk, Lockhart brings the craziest, most unintelligible words to life and helps the reader understand words through her visual clues and illustrations. High praises for this beauty - Five Stars! A big Thank You to NetGalley and Francis Lincoln/Quarto Publishing for this digital copy to read & review!

A brief introduction gives the reader permission to read the book straight through from A to Z to learn new things, or not read it at all, and just look at the pictures. The illustrations are whimsical and eye-catching. With interesting pictures and cool words like Quixotic and Salubrious, I don’t doubt that whatever approach is taken new words will be learned. My only recommendation for a change would be to replace the word “Difficult” in the title. I fear that could be off-putting to some children who would otherwise benefit from this book. This collection of words may more aptly be described as “less common”. I dare say most adults would gain from perusing this volume. #TheDictionaryofDifficultWords #NetGalley @QuartoKids ‏ @QuartoKnows ‏ @TheQuartoGroup

Frances Lincoln Children's Books and NetGalley provided me with an electronic copy of The Dictionary of Difficult Words. I was under no obligation to review this book and my opinion is freely given. Although the formatting of the book gives readers the impression that this is a children's book, adults will also benefit from this dictionary of SAT type words. Parents will enjoy learning along with their children, especially as the author has included the parts of speech and the phonetic spelling. Besides including small drawings for many of the words, the author has chosen to highlight some with full page whimsical representations. The author has included some helpful information at the beginning of the book, giving tips to the successful reading of this book, explanations of parts of speech, and hints about determining the meaning of certain words. The presentation of the words is brilliantly designed to not cause anxiety over learning something that may be considered as difficult. I would definitely recommend The Dictionary of Difficult Words to parents, educators, and children alike.

This is a dictionary, but not a typical one. It is designed for children who are intrigued by words or who could use something to help them to become more interested in words and reading. Appealingly illustrated and wisely selected, the entries are entertaining and informative. The author playfully suggests ways to read the book. A few examples include back to front, front to back, by opening to a random page, etc. The idea is that exploring words should be intriguing. Before getting started, there are a couple of helpful sections; one describes the parts of speech and another offers hints for decoding some words (for example phile referring to loving something). The words themselves are appealing. Some, even if arcane, I knew while others I came across for the first time. Often difficult to pronounce or spell, the child who learns them will feel mighty clever! This book deserves its place in homes and schools. It is a perfect book to browse through and enjoy. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this informative book. All

If you too love words, I highly recommend checking out The Dictionary of Difficult Words written by lexicographer Jane Solomon and illustrated by Louise Lockhart. Written for children between the ages of 7 and 12 but also appealing to adults, the hardback dictionary contains over 400 fabulously difficult words to discover. Each word entry includes a pronunciation guide, part of speech identification, and concise definition. The modern illustrations, which come across as a mix of watercolor and woodcut, bring the words to life and brighten up the pages with splashes of bold colors. My kids and I are having so much fun reading the entries and learning so many fun new words. We give enthusiastically give The Dictionary of Difficult Words four out of four thumbs up! I received a copy of this book in exchange for a review on my website. I am posting this review here all on my own.

The most unique and fun dictionary ever. Conventional dictionaries are referencing tools. Despite the fact some people do enjoy "reading" dictionaries, but most of us only point our ways to them when we need to look up words we don't know. This particular dictionary, however, is more than "a tool" but a fun read for readers of all ages. Majority of the words in this collection are not commonly used yet they are some of the most practical vocabularies everyone should know. We normally describe people who love cats as a cat lovers but how often we call them "ailurophiles?" How many times we have seen people name the "coming-of-age" novel a "bildungsroman?' And I can only imagine how cute my 5yo would be when asking me for his "bumbershoot" rather than using the normally used word "umbrella." With the exception of the abstract words, vocabularies are accompanied by fun illustrations which is the publisher's signature niche. Definitions and explanations are written in the most direct and the simplest way. The author also provides pronunciations which is helpful. Useful, aesthetic, educational and fun, "The Dictionary of Difficult Words" is DEFINITELY a book everyone should own. Already placed my pre-order online today. I highly recommend!

I bought this for my 9yo who is a "bespectacled bibliophile" (self-described) and loves reading, language, and impressing adults. It's a beautiful quality book on a physical level. If your kids liked the "Weighty Words" books and you're looking for something that will have similar appeal (though the content and style are different) then this would be a good choice. Beautiful illustrations. A pleasure to read yourself, see a kid reading, or read aloud together.

I like this a lot! Each letter of the alphabet has four pages over which 15 or so more difficult words are defined and illustrated. For each letter there is also one special word that gets a full-page illustration and a bit more explanation. The illustrations here won't appeal to everyone, but there is a plethora of information within the pages that will keep even the most precocious polymath busy for quite some time. 4 strong stars for this suprisingly interesting dictionary. Thanks to NetGalley and Frances Lincoln Children's Books for providing me with a DRC of this book.

Bought this for my friend’s kid who is a spelling bee champion and likely the smartest person in the room including of the adults. She tore into it immediately and has been reading it ever since. I disagree with the other reviewer who suggested removing “Difficult” from the title. That was part of what made this such an appealing gift for a kid who knows everything. She likes a challenge and I knew it being difficult she would cherish the words within even more.

After looking at this book, my 9-year-old grandson said of his younger brother, he's very histrionic.

The Dictionary of Difficult Words by Jane Solomon, Louise Lockhart (Illustrator) This is a fun children's book that I requested from NetGalley and the review is voluntary. It has a wonderful selection of words, what they mean, and how to say them. Some words are quite the mouthful! It is sure to make for some conversations and laughter. I think this will be a fun book for kids that like something different. This book makes learning fun.

This book is so much fun! I can see me reading it with my grandson who is just learning how to read and sound out big words. Then I can imagine discussions around some of the more silly sounding ones like ZEDONK and ZEGUMA!

This dictionary is so much fun for both adults and children! The illustrations are beautiful, as well. This is a great conversation starter. I highly recommend this as a gift to anyone of any age!

First of all the illustrations in this book are absolutely charming. Good word selection as well, smart kids will love it and there are plenty of words that will be new to adults also (at least they were to me!) so you would not be bored at all reading this with your kids. Additionally, it's not just a list of words with dry definitions, the definitions are very accessible and the author has a witty, friendly voice to go along with it. Definitely recommend!

This is even more stunning in real life (the picture really doesn't do it justice). Every child should have a copy of this. The definitions are great and the words are super fun.

Fun visually. Entertaining for adult kids at heart and elementary-high school kids. Super large print. Learned a few words myself.

I bought the book for myself because I am not a native speaker and struggle to learn new difficult words 'from a list'. The book brought back the joy of learning that I remember from my childhood.

A really fun book for my kids, 11 and 7. The big one has found interesting words to include (correctly) in his literacy work, and the little one lovesfinding new words that sound a bit cheeky or rude. Win - win!

I bought this for my 11yr old who loved it. She loved sounding out the words and reading out the definitions. Beautifully illustrated too. A lovely book.

Fantastic quality, illustrations and content. Bought for my 5-year-old niece but it's great for adults too... it has certainly taught me a few new words.

Great book! Bought it for my 5 year old who loves it. As an adult I’m enjoying it too.