English (grammar and writing)
Legend
- McGill users only
- Open access resource
- Free resource
- In-library-use only
- Catalogue record
Sources for Background Information
Encyclopedias
English Dictionaries
- Oxford English dictionary online
- Concise Oxford English dictionary
- Canadian Oxford dictionary
- Oxford American dictionary of modern English
- Merriam-Webster online dictionary (with audio word pronunciations)
- The Free Dictionary (include Collins Essential English Dictionary, with audio word pronunciations)
- Concise Canadian Oxford dictionary
- Collins English dictionary
- Webster's II new college dictionary
- Longman dictionary of language and culture
Visual Dictionaries
Thesauri
- Oxford paperback thesaurus
- Oxford American thesaurus of current English
- Roget's II the new thesaurus
- Oxford dictionary of synonyms and antonyms
Grammar and Usage Guides
- The American Heritage guide to contemporary usage and style
- Oxford dictionary of English grammar
- Concise Oxford companion to the English language
- Oxford Dictionary of American usage and style
- Guide to Canadian English usage
- Practical English usage
- English usage for learners
Idioms and Expressions
Slang
- Dictionary of contemporary slang
- Dictionary of American slang
- New Partridge dictionary of slang and unconventional English
Searching the Library Catalogue
Use the basic word(s) anywhere or advanced keyword search in the library catalogue. You can search using words like - grammar, canad?, dictionary etc.
Note that it is not necessary to use diacritics such as ^ ` ¨ when searching the catalogue.
Search tips
| Truncation symbol: | ? | e.g. litera? will retrieve catalogue records containing the words literary, literate, literature, etc. |
| Phrase searching: | "___" | e.g. "english grammar" will retrieve catalogue records containing the words english grammar as a phrase |
| Boolean operators: | (), AND, OR, NOT default: AND |
e.g. literature AND (english OR canadian) will retrieve catalogue records containing the word literature AND either english OR canadian |
Get more catalogue search tips.
Searching Using Subject headings
Often keywords--natural language terms--are too diverse to round up everything in the catalogue on your topic.
To overcome this problem, once you have found some relevant items by searching using your own words, click on the title and examine the full view of each, especially the section called "LC Subject", where you will find the uniform subject heading used for your topic, and then redo your search using the "Subject begins with ..." option.
Databases and Article Indexes
News and current affairs:
General academic databases (both scholarly and popular content):
To find journal databases for a particular subject area (e.g. biology, literature, business, etc.) use the database finder.
Use this guide if you need help finding journal articles.
Selected Internet Sites
- List of English learning podcasts on Podcast Alley
- EnglishGrammer.org: Free grammar guides, video lessons, and exercises. Includes advanced topics and advice for writing
- Usingenglish.com
- BBC Learning English (UK)
- Grammar Girl
- Common errors in English
- Ask Oxford
- Language sites on the Internet
- Daily Grammar
- Topics online magazine
Other Resources
Related Subject Guides
- English Literature
- Study Skills
- Intensive English Advanced A (course guide)
- Intensive English Advanced B (course guide)
- Resources for international students
If you have any comments about the Library or suggestions of how we could do things better, please let us know.