| name | dictionary |
| description | Look up word definitions, phonetics, synonyms, and usage examples using the Free Dictionary API. |
Dictionary
Look up word definitions, phonetics, synonyms, and usage examples using the Free Dictionary API.
Category: education
API Key Required: No
When to use
- User asks "what does X mean?"
- User wants the definition, pronunciation, or synonyms of a word
- User asks for word usage examples
How it works
Look up a word
curl -s "https://api.dictionaryapi.dev/api/v2/entries/en/serendipity"
Returns array of meanings with:
phonetic — pronunciation text
phonetics[].audio — MP3 pronunciation URL
meanings[].partOfSpeech — noun, verb, adjective, etc.
meanings[].definitions[].definition — the definition
meanings[].definitions[].example — usage example
meanings[].synonyms — synonym list
Other languages
Replace en with: es, fr, de, it, pt, ar, hi, ja, ko, ru, tr, zh
curl -s "https://api.dictionaryapi.dev/api/v2/entries/fr/bonjour"
Examples
User: "Define 'ephemeral'"
→ Query the API. Reply with part of speech, definition, example sentence, and synonyms.
User: "How do you pronounce 'quinoa'?"
→ Return the phonetic text and audio URL if available.
Constraints
- Free, no key needed
- Returns 404 for unknown words — handle gracefully
- English has the best coverage; other languages may have gaps