English

The National Scientific Publishers encyclopedia (Polish)

Alternative forms

• encyclopaedia (Britain)
• encyclopædia (archaic)

Etymology

From New Latin encyclopaedia ("general education"), from Renaissance Ancient Greek (enkuklopaideía, "education in the circle of arts and sciences"), a mistaken univerbated form of Koine Greek ? (enkúklios paideí?, "education in the circle of arts and sciences"), from (enkúklios, "circular") + ? (paideí?, "child-rearing, education").

Pronunciation

• (Canada) IPA^(key): /?n?s.kl?'pi.di.?/
• (UK, US) IPA^(key): /?n?sa?.kl?'pi(:).di.?/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -i:di?
• Hyphenation: en?cy?clo?pe?dia

Noun

encyclopedia (plural encyclopedias or encyclopediae or encyclopediæ)

1. A comprehensive reference work (often spanning several printed volumes) with articles (usually arranged in alphabetical order, or sometimes arranged by category) on a range of subjects, sometimes general, sometimes limited to a particular field.

   I only use the library for the encyclopedia, as we've got most other books here.

   His life's work was a four-volume encyclopedia of aviation topics.

2. (dated) The circle of arts and sciences; a comprehensive summary of knowledge, or of a branch of knowledge.

Usage notes

The spelling encyclopedia is standard in American English, preferred in Canadian English, accepted in Australian and International English, and also very common in British English. It is more common than encyclopaedia, for example, in UK newspapers on Google News in 2009 by a 7:3 margin.

Derived terms

Related terms

Translations

See also

• dictionary

Further reading

• encyclopedia on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
• encyclopedia in Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.