Roget's Thesaurus

Metadata

Gutenberg ID

22

Title

Roget's Thesaurus

Language

en

Book source

Project Gutenberg

Description max 80 words

This electronic edition presents Peter Mark Roget's seminal 1911 thesaurus, a comprehensive classification of English words and phrases designed to facilitate idea expression and literary composition. Supplemented with modern vocabulary, this resource offers a structured semantic database ideal for linguistic experimentation and natural-language processing projects.

Summary up to 500 words

Peter Mark Roget's *Thesaurus* stands as a foundational tool for understanding semantic relationships and conceptual organization, distinct from modern commercial alternatives due to its lack of proprietary restrictions. Originally published in 1911, this electronic version derives from the seminal work that revolutionized the expression of ideas and literary composition. Unlike contemporary thesauri that often lack depth in technical nouns or modern verbs, Roget's system offers a comprehensive, hierarchical classification of English vocabulary into six main classes: Existence, Space, Matter, Intellect, Volition, and Affections. Each class is meticulously subdivided into specific categories, such as 'Being in the Abstract' or 'Intellect,' containing hundreds of entries that list synonyms, antonyms, and related concepts. The text expands original abbreviations and removes side-by-side formatting to enhance modern usability while preserving historical context. It includes Latin terms, obsolete words, and foreign phrases, often marked for clarity to aid in historical linguistics. While this version supplements the original 1911 edition with over 1,000 words, it acknowledges limitations regarding modern vocabulary, particularly in technical fields. The arrangement has been modified slightly, such as splitting entries and marking obsolete words with specific notations, to facilitate computerized search and readability. This resource serves as an invaluable database for natural-language understanding programs and experimentation in natural-language processing, providing a convenient, open-access alternative to large academic or commercial efforts. By organizing words by semantic categories, it allows users to explore the inheritance of semantic characteristics from higher categories, making it a unique asset for individuals and small groups engaged in linguistic research or composition.

LLM editorial rating

4.2/5

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Categories

• Reference
• Language