Buying Roget's Thesaurus

[Heteronym]

I'm thinking about getting Roget's Thesaurus to improve my English vocabulary. The problem is that there are lots of different versions available. I was wondering if you could suggest the best version, in terms of clarity, organisation and range of words. I want something informative, easy to peruse, that leads me to new words quickly.

Any suggestions?

[MystyrMystyry]

The Penguin one is pretty well laid out but I'm not sure if it's still available - but there's also a little Oxford version I found at the supermarket, which though not comprehensive, is handy to jolt my brain into approaching a sentence in a different way. There's a cheap edition I have too, which is a bit old now, but laid out with 1000 words, followed by synonyms, then antonyms, but no actual definitions so you'll still need a dictionary

I recall seeing a Collins dictionary and thesaurus (turn it upside down and open the back cover, which is now the front cover, for one or the other) but I didn't buy it because, well, because I already had a better dictionary...

[stlukesguild]

I simply use: http://thesaurus.com/

[LitNetIsGreat]

I downloaded Foxlingo into my PC because the Google toolbar no longer works with the latest Firefox browser. It's pretty good. Just right click and ctrl on any word and you are away. There's also a translate function which works the same. Of course this is only available if you use Firefox but I expect there to be similar add-ons with other browsers. I have a gigantic Chambers dictionary and hardly ever use it because I seem to spend more and more time online these days. With the stuff available online I would wonder if it is even worth it buying a large dictionary/thesaurus personally. Even if I am reading and want to look something up the likelihood is that there's a computer on close by anyway.

[Calidore]

Don't know if there's a standard thesaurus. The standard dictionary for proofreading and editing is the Merriam-Webster Collegiate, so I bought their thesaurus also.

[billl]

One thing that I remember about Roget's from years ago was how it was arranged thematically. I found myself just flipping through the thing for a while almost every time I picked it up. Apparently (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roget%27s_Thesaurus#Roget.27s_Thesaurus_as_a_class ification_system), Wikipedia uses Roget's system of classification as a model for its own classification of topics.

This is an aspect that a search-based online thesaurus doesn't provide (although some of them might be interesting in that they provide links to each suggested synonym, which makes *that* type of exploration easier...). Anyhow, I think that aspect of Roget's Thesaurus might be interesting if you are thinking of getting it to expand your vocabulary. At the very least, I can say it was interesting to me as a young student, and it had me flipping through the thing rather than simply using it to check on particular words.

I'm not completely sure about the history of the various editions, but it seems like the trend now is to simply have an alphabetical listing of words, like a dictionary (because it is so useful/practical). However, this particular version put out by Websters

http://www.amazon.com/Websters-World-Thesaurus-Charlton-Laird/dp/0028631226/ref=sr_1_6?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1311898500&sr=1-6

has gotten fantastic reviews on Amazon, and at least provides a brief "index" that retains the original Roget's classification scheme--although the actual listings are arranged in the now-conventional A-Z dictionary-style way. It also has some "discussion" entries that help differentiate between some synonyms, in terms of particular contexts in which one or another might be more typically used. I don't own this book, but it looks like a good bet.

But I wonder if you could find an old Roget's, arranged in the old style, at a used bookstore or something... Just as an extra aid (or for fun).

Anyone know more about the old style of Roget's, with the thematic classification system? (I'm just going on memory.)

[Heteronym]

Thank you all for your suggestions!

[Heteronym]

I simply use: http://thesaurus.com/

This has become an indispensable tool, it's very useful.