Thesaurus

Pronunciation

• IPA: /θɪˈsɔːɹəs/
• Rhymes: -ɔːɹəs

Origin

16th century, from Latin thēsaurus, from Ancient Greek θησαυρός (thēsauros, "storehouse, treasure"); its current English usage/meaning was established soon after the publication of Peter Roget's Thesaurus of English Words and Phrases in 1852

Full definition of thesaurus

Noun

1. A publication, usually in the form of a book, that provides synonyms (and sometimes antonyms) for the words of a given language."Roget" is the leading brand name for a print English thesaurus that lists words under general concepts rather than just close synonyms.
2. (archaic) A dictionary or encyclopedia.
3. (information science) A hierarchy of subject headings—canonic titles of themes and topics, the titles serving as search keys.

Synonyms

• synonymicon

Derived terms

• thesaural