General Dictionaries Of Quotations

The following titles, available at the Information Desk in Room 315, are standard dictionaries of quotations in the English language, that is, the entries appeared originally in English or are translations into English from foreign languages.

Bartlett, John. Familiar Quotations, 16th ed. (Boston: Little, Brown, 1992). A standard, comprehensive collection whose primary arrangement is by author (listed chronologically by birthdate); indexes are by keyword and author. Earlier editions of this work (see the catalogs for appropriate call numbers) are useful for quotations omitted in the latest edition.

Benham, William G. Book of Quotations, Proverbs, and Household Words (London: Harrap, 1948). The English language section of this dictionary of quotations is arranged by author. However, the special sections covering quotations in Latin, Greek, and western European languages are arranged by the first word of the quotation (translations into English provided). A section entitled "Waifs and Strays" (arranged by topics such as "Sundial Inscriptions" and "London Street Sayings") provides a listing for miscellaneous and idiosyncratic quotations. A keyword index is available for English language quotations.

Bloomsbury Dictionary of Quotations (London: Bloomsbury, 1987). This work is arranged by author; a keyword index is supplied.

The Home Book of Quotations, Classical and Modern, 10th ed. (New York: Greenwich House, 1984). This comprehensive dictionary of quotations is primarily arranged by subject; author and keyword indexes are provided.

Hoyt, J.K. Hoyt's New Cyclopedia of Practical Quotations Drawn from the Speech and Literature of All Nations (New York: Funk and Wagnalls, 1927). This comprehensive collection, arranged by subject, includes author and keyword indexes.

Mencken, Henry Louis. A New Dictionary of Quotations on Historical Principles from Ancient and Modern Sources (New York: Knopf, 1984). This comprehensive collection, notable for its inclusion of many lesser-known quotations, is arranged only by subject (with cross references to related headings). No indexes.

The Oxford Dictionary of Quotations, 3rd ed. (New York: Oxford University Press, 1979). Arranged by author, this dictionary supplies a keyword index. (The fourth edition of this work, published in 1992, is available in the Reading Room under the call number *R-NAY 92-18726.)

Powell, David. The Wisdom of the Novel: A Dictionary of Quotations (New York: Garland, 1985). Arranged by subject, this dictionary draws its quotations from English and American authors published between 1470 and 1900; author, novel, and keyword indexes are provided.

Stevenson, Burton E. The Home Book of Proverbs, Maxims, and Familiar Phrases (New York: Macmillan, 1966). This comprehensive work is arranged by subject with cross references to related headings; a keyword index is provided.

Tripp, Rhoda T., ed., International Thesaurus of Quotations (New York: Crowell, 1970). Primarily arranged by subject, this work is also indexed by author, source, and keyword.