Table Of Contenta
Children’s
b
c
Illustrated
d
e
f
Dictionar y
g
h
i
j
robot
robots noun k
a machine that can imitate some 
human actions. Robots are often 
l
used in factories, but can also be 
used in homes.
m
n
o
bulb
bulbs noun p
the rounded 
glass part of an 
q
electric light.
r
s
skull t
skulls noun
the bone frame of the head  u
that protects the brain and 
supports the face.
v
w
sunfl ower
x
sunfl owers noun
a tall plant with large, 
yellow fl owers. The  y
seeds can be eaten or 
used to make cooking oil.
z
Children’s
Illustrated
Dictionar y
John McIlwain
DORLING KINDERSLEY
A
B Contents
C
All about words  4   Musical instrument  133
D
How to use this dictionary  6   Pet  148
E Dictionary games  8   Plant  151
The dictionary  12   Reptile  168
F Full-page entries:   Sea life  178
  Alphabet  16   Shape  182
G
  Bird  28   Skeleton  188
  Boat  31   Sport  197
H
  Car  39   Time  216
  Costume  51   Transportation  221
I
  Dinosaur  61   Tree  223
J   Fish  79   Universe  229
  Fruit  85   Vegetable  233
K   Growth  94 Abbreviations  246
  Horse  102 Spelling guide  248
L
  Insect  108 Word building  249
  Jewelry  112 Facts and fi gures  250
M
  Mammal  124 Countries of the world  252
N
O
P
LONDON, NEW YORK, 
MELBOURNE, MUNICH, AND DELHI
Q
Senior Editors  Nicola Tuxworth, 2009 Edition: First published in the United States in 1994 
 Susan Peach Project Editor  Niki Foreman This revised edition published in 2009 by
R Senior Art Editor  Rowena Alsey Senior Art Editor  Sheila Collins DK Publishing
Project Editor  Lee Simmons Managing Editor  Linda Esposito 375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014
S Art Editor  Marcus James Managing Art Editor  Diane Thistlethwaite Copyright © 1994, 2009 
Editor  Claire Watts Publishing Manager  Andrew Macintyre  
Dorling Kindersley Limited
Designers  Cheryl Telfer, Diane Clouting Category Publisher  Laura Buller
09 10 11 12 13 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
T Production Editors  Maria Elia, 
CD207—05/09
Vivianne Ridgeway
Managing Editor  Jane Yorke Jacket Editor  Mariza O’Keeffe All rights reserved under International and Pan-
U Managing Art Editor  Chris Scollen Jacket Designer  Akiko Kato American Copyright Conventions. No part of this 
Production  Jayne Wood Geography Consultant  Simon Mumford publication may be reproduced, stored in a 
US Editor  Margaret Parrish retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by 
V Photography by  Andy Crawford,  any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, 
Steve Gorton, Susanna Price,  recording or otherwise, without the prior written 
DK India
W and Tim Ridley Head of Publishing  Aparna Sharma permission of the copyright owner. Published in 
Design Manager  Arunesh Talapatra Great Britain by Dorling Kindersley Limited. 
Illustrated by  Grahame Corbett,  Editorial Manager  Glenda Fernandes A catalog record for this book is available from 
X Peter Dennis, Bill Le Fever,  Assistant Editor  Samira Sood the Library of Congress.
Nicholas Hewetson, Louis Mackay,  Designers  Malavika Talukder, 
ISBN 978-0-7566-5196-1
Roger Stewart, and Jolyon Webb Govind Mittal
Y
Language Consultants  The Centre for Literacy  DTP Coordinator  Sunil Sharma Color reproduction by Colourscan, Singapore
in Primary Education, London, England DTP Designers  Dheeraj Arora,  Printed and bound by Toppan Printing Co. Ltd., 
Z Pronunciation Consultant  Sheila Dignen Preetam Singh China
2
a
Introduction b
c
The Dorling Kindersley Children’s Illustrated  In addition, this book will help children develop their  d
Dictionary is specifically aimed at children of  awareness of words and the relationships between them. 
An introductory section explains the concept of parts of 
seven years and up, an age when children are  e
speech, such as nouns and verbs, that are also listed 
becoming increasingly independent readers  under each entry in the dictionary. The final section looks 
and writers and when a dictionary can be  at word beginnings and endings, spelling patterns,  f
and common abbreviations.
a valuable companion.
g
Words and pictures A dictionary with a difference h
Unlike many other dictionaries, The Children’s Illustrated  A unique feature of this dictionary is the 26 full-page 
Dictionary is not just about words—it also contains pictures.  entries, where words and pictures are grouped by theme.  i
Children today are used to information being presented in  Browsing through these word 
a visual form through television, movies, and computers, and  collections, on subjects as diverse as 
j
are skilled readers of images. As a result, they require books  costumes and time, children will enjoy 
to be increasingly visually sophisticated. recognizing known words and concepts 
and discovering new vocabulary and  k
The colorful photographs and illustrations in this  information. These pages offer many 
dictionary are fresh, exciting, and highly relevant to  opportunities for discussion and 
l
children’s interests and concerns. These images will help  provide the basis for further exploration 
to draw young readers into the book; they also work with  of a wide range of topics and themes. 
m
the text to give clear and concise definitions.
n
A lasting work of reference
Vital skills for readers and writers
The Children’s Illustrated Dictionary combines a core of 
o
Using a dictionary can teach children many useful skills.  common vocabulary with words that have a high interest 
One of the most important is the ability to locate information  level for children of this age group. It provides them with 
that is organized in alphabetical order. Once acquired, this  both a rich source of information about the world and  p
skill will enable them to use many other reference books,  an important resource for developing their reading and 
from telephone directories to encyclopedias, that are  writing skills. q
organized along the same principle. The clear design and 
layout of this dictionary make it easy for children to learn 
how to look things up. r
The Children’s Illustrated Dictionary can also help to widen  s
vocabulary and improve spelling. Young readers and writers 
can find out for themselves what an unfamiliar word means 
t
or check any spellings about which they are unsure.
u
v
w
x
y
z
3
A
All about words
B
In every sentence that we speak or write,  entry has its part of speech printed below it 
C there are several types of word. They are  in italic type. The parts of speech that are 
called “parts of speech.” Each of them has  labeled in the dictionary (verbs, adverbs, 
D its own name and its own job to do in  adjectives, interjections, prepositions, and 
the sentence. In this dictionary, each word  nouns) are explained on these two pages.
E
F
Verbs
G
Verbs are sometimes called “action words” because they are 
words that describe what a person or a thing is doing. Sit,
H think,sleep,sing, and climb are all verbs. A sentence 
must contain a verb to make sense. There are a few special 
kinds of verb, such as “being” and “helping” verbs, that do 
I
slightly different jobs in a sentence.
J
K They were both very angry.
L Being verbs
Being words, such as am,
M is,are,was, and were, all 
come from the verb to be.
They link someone or 
N She runs to school  The dog often lies
something with the words 
every morning. on the floor.
that describe them.
O
Helping verbs Verb tenses
P
Verbs such as have, be, The form of a verb shows whether the action it describes 
will, must, may, and do, takes place in the present, the past, or the future. This is 
Q
are sometimes used with  called the verb’s tense. When a verb, such as hang, appears 
other verbs in a sentence.  in this dictionary, the 
R They show how possible or  entry looks like this:
necessary it is that an 
action takes place. Helping 
S
verbs can also  be used to 
show a verb’s tense. 
T
hang
It may rain tomorrow.
U hangs hanging hung
verb
V
W The second line  Present tense:
of the entry shows how  She hangs up her T-shirt.
the verb is written in 
X
three different tenses— Continuous present tense: 
the present, the  She is hanging up her 
Y continuous present,  T-shirt.
and the past tense. 
I do like
These tenses are  Past tense:
Z sandwiches!
used like this: She hung up her T-shirt.
4
a
Adverbs Nouns
An adverb is a word that gives  A noun is a word that names a thing, a person, or a place. 
b
more information about a verb,  Cat,teacher,spoon, and city are all nouns. Nouns do not 
an adjective, or another adverb.  have to be things that you can see—words like truth and 
c
Adverbs can tell us how, when,  geography are also nouns.
where, how often, or how much. 
Slowly,yesterday,upward, d
andvery are all adverbs. 
Many adverbs end with 
e
the letters “ly.”
f
g
h
i
These newspapers are all  They played happily They often went to  The present came in a round 
j
published daily. with the balloon. the café for a snack. box tied with ribbon.
k
Adjectives Interjections
l
An adjective is a word that is used to describe a noun.  Interjections are words 
Fat,yellow,sticky,dark, and hairy are all adjectives.  such as hello and good-
m
bye that can be used on 
their own, without being 
part of a full sentence.  n
Exclamations, such as 
Oh! and Ouch!, are 
o
also interjections.
p
Conjunctions
q
A tall, green, Conjunctions are words 
The car was big, red, and shiny. prickly cactus. such as and,but, and of,
that are used to join parts  r
of sentences together.
Comparatives and superlatives
s
If you want to compare a person or thing with 
another, you often use an adjective in the comparative  Prepositions
t
or superlative form. Taller,easier,better, and quicker
are comparatives. Tallest,easiest,best, and  Prepositions, such as in,
quickest are superlatives. Comparatives  with,behind, and on, u
either end with the letters “-er,” or  show how one person or 
include the word “more.”  thing relates to another.
v
Superlatives either end with 
the letters “-est” or include  She held 
the word “most.” the ball  w
above her 
head. x
y
Adjective: Comparative: Superlative: z
This ball is big. This ball is bigger. This ball is the biggest.
5
A
How to use this dictionary
B
Read the information on these two pages  shown below. There are also 26 full-page 
C to find out how to get the most from your  entries in the dictionary that provide a 
dictionary. Most pages in the book look like  whole page of pictures and vocabulary on 
D the double page from the letter R section  a theme. The page shown here is about cars. 
E
What’s on a page
F
Guide word Headword Guide word
Use the guide word at the top of  This is the word you are looking up.  The right-hand 
G
the page to help you find the page  The headword is printed in heavy,  guide word, rate,
a word is on. The left-hand guide  black letters at the start of the entry.  tells you that this 
H word,rabbi, tells you that this is  The definition underneath explains  is the last word on 
the first word on the page. what the headword means.  this page.
I
rabbi rate
J New letter  A Rr radio rag railroad rake rascal a
B rraae ddcieeoivsvi ecneso  uethlneactt rsiecnadl ss iogrn als  ara gsms naolul,n torn piece of cloth. 1rtar aialr inonaesdt rwsu onnrok uo nnof. tracks that  artao kp geialse tr haoekrri nt oug  psr amlkeoeaodvt evhse  oribvnetro  soil. raa smcaislsc hnioeuvnous person. b Pictures
section C ianntdo  cshouanngde.s them  u2 sae st rraanils ptroarctkatsi,o tno gseytshteemr w thitaht   rash c
K D trains, stations, and land. rake oaran sp hyaeotscu hnr o osufk nrined., itchy spots  d The photos and 
ML Esae abccitghio  lnnee tswttea rlr,e tltsitk eweri  tthhi s R. HGKLFEJI tRufrar(cid:78)rraraarhe   aanasobbstleadeibnmbbbb gyeaebtii itsavrbb crios ttgehlan nesliinnrbeo e  toomaria-utuneu rhnnoayegnn dfem t d no htl rmhoaia nrewatam   tb.Jll i aunevwwlrielgirystiho s hawth .cl s otT.in vhgee  yin   2sbbasrfr1soaptpa  asaraacr odod ktic  rprnlbmmeeotlktnagtsaui istnson ney d sn ntwiituu,otsono  snpci ungtaeh anh  rnd (ga sd eec  ek1 e9t7). baucrntheoemapne u hdoi tneneuain rrnsoe mootrsamfgf  uaocyeftl   tr osrteimuaovlbd eslisaii ovbttsaayrienecndtgac ib kevtysihint. i tyHgnh  cgeiags n.h   hrTbrraIrrathaaany aanohiigse u ddgheue igad ss esdevd p ee ogrrnend,o  or orroloearboiaurnu rcus ngren uhpse emnusu ,o tctrsaif.onhp dpngreeet i  stsroawloepa rl olmalae ewt.midtdoa e tmcodeknem   ntph.eer . sirrarritfwrrnnaaaaahhaanaiiiil  einnnn tdltiina syh bsecnnrv e r orlenofaecos rbw podrth suobwhsujsk odme. oanhyncsfwt  to i  wiclvueohen lioetrn’ss   trthaheian sti unangp .pears trir1tmaoo aal  lppdli eleoilassyro rctnpguaoleesnu,s.t n p souorbm wliecot rhmriyneiegnt gitnh ga th iesl d  orra2ar1frar    aaoSL4nh om0nnchuath0segh cett -erehm swh ar efne ane atvoere nekuamrri,n   bbmr haw oteacooh elkr se.ars rtauneorn rceea .rtetlaer ed. r(cid:78)orraan  aassj uaptsaybi pc beryruab,r zsiree-hebs dra wni rrfoi-ryteuuheni tt htohrants g.rows  hkgeljif isetalhhxnluiaodnswc gtht rlsyeya lol tpowuio ot hknoa  slt i ke 
MN eat grass, roots, and leaves. aHha inersn a wdocraykusiemn tm gswa .niktohiin sge . Touhtesyid tee sttheed  nfourc lreaadr ioactivity 1rroar aai lfsi ol lonrn ohgua nbnagrin fogr c hlootlhdeins go no.n to,  2Titnh ha ate htl  poetn aeprgsat-tyrdsk  ihd.setrlaidvn eacr eps ’oc salikrti icrlalaslc. era lly oklariat iktchnseoe d mnrasos  mol ueafnoa rrntga  esrt m omedaaoetlun lp stal eatn.h niSamtotsa m,l lowseo. hk isl e  mn define the 
N Alphabet QORP race bstarnhhyo ade iudspe npevsano,i csdcreiait nitrohgsn, a o atau ntnted drl  laassdip ryieocoer uwda  faotv f es. ofrarrp(cid:78)aarf o asodd swaamtidioyi re c aao ririt curirahp gtcrylieshlava-e ddtecn  e ietltaueoin.dsn- toejeeehs r c-dna triokva-uetwnivn-i -tee t2Uthh saeae  ts lt othtanreiagr r silan.iinsl e rt uoo nfh  mealpleo tynaoglu .t rcalicmkb   rrara aaisniiidnnnrgofdlpear sdl onlroopupn of rain. rr1a aamm sm naolue nsheep. rrfHraaoe mnnra ggtnhege  rtvheer bd otoor rbienllg. wsTthiotenhye  t,c hwaenoir og dsnt, araownn dtgh  efrvrooeunngt mh t eeettahl . qpor headwords.
O Use the alphabet  S 1ra ace cso nmopuentition of speed. eitdsg oeu.ter  nthoeu namount of rain that falls  ara npgeerrsso nno wuhno looks after a  rate s
P royinufo  untthh nfieeinn  pddgai  cydgtoeoiou wtnron a p hrtleyha.lec pe  s ide  WUVYXT asr2Aah n casaedw rg vmierem ortabumhype is n oshgfaa  mrpraeeeco  sepao.lnmec wees htoo rs  2ar1rh(cid:78)wAa   aiensaaadraa t  di aytamttesohi trirro e  iaaapcflrtnoy soator, or- lnowodmtl oto  airtrameurnhantngeda.k  alth  htrtoha rtsoan cwutrk egaa ewhtlnel io.irttw h itn shh  aott   trhr1mraia aagafadtvhf dsifle ttuen lob syoaoe uftte ionlnnog gget stipeh tldeah rta.fto rm  abao23War  re iatber o ph  u outthlearshnaoa etarsdl.vdlatt oei E iacclwleua srad rn omn oab dpadye t .fi.r mlaleialdd ew oitf hr ubber  garrTroaav rahideoineinewr  nnf cfoasahs r  laeipefln,rso a itt hnrt srsor t nhSieotco,opo uswuwiucltntsaeah trtl  h  Ajaauemrr naeeegnaarlns.iec.u atah.la t  ptatcachoal nava ra csecetra he nnir isogtrc ouiylmne n pp eowle vaaoiectnpdehdl. e b wu yfhsr eoedme ls  mraAuqraf(cid:78)odd uaan srorjjaiueeerrpacypccssker tttiuhre ii dvvaoooa beeri rlbnl   usoau-wjre tew  trinefirotlfl.dt ylc.iofem pmNaorenkw.. York ChT2Oor1aif  ihts aatg3eyte  hr0sls  iev  t prcnmvaahaeoecxeietuallesid entcos s.ic fao fa (onp5bnr a0 r  riy ektusmsmno aer )apt np tact eh.arrt a mrhraogetuenesrt .s. wuyxvt car dbca
Q The highlighted letter  Z p1rah6cyi2asli caadlj ecchtaivreacteristics. (cid:78)th sea ye nragyin-dee eo-fa ay- tvoerhicle. life raft tsipraere (cid:78)(cid:78)  coopmpopsaitreis coonms rmaroenr rafureels tcan antenna163plilcaeztnese rooLf oranckdon taxitailgate ef
tells you that you are  mreairrrvoirew g
h
R in the R section.
Word box tow hook jeep i
muffler j
Families of  wheel hub twrhimeel minivan bumper k
S linked words  exhaust pipe tire spoke wwiipnedrshield ml
are enclosed in  mreairrrvoirew n
T Alphabetical order a box. All the  headlight ohronoadmentfendewrheel hatchback po
piston q
The headwords in this  letters of the words are  words in this 
r
U dictionary are listed in  used to decide which  box start with  fan s
athlpeh saabmetei coarld oerrd aesr —the  ccoommeess  fibersfotr. eS oc octa,t twhoer dsa,mraei n. titrreu tnrekadvintage carhstaanrdtilnhegood windshieldradiator grill steering wheel engine hood uvt
V letters of the alphabet.  because A comes before  w
x
Words that begin with  O in the alphabet.  y
W A are grouped at the  If words start with  pexipheaust sports car lstiuiggrhnntal z
39
start of the dictionary,  the same two letters, 
followed by B words,  then the third letter 
X Full-page entries
and so on up to Z. decides the order. So 
Where several words  radius comes before  All the pictures and labels on a full-page 
Y start with the same  raft, because D comes  entry are linked to the main headword. 
letter, the second  beforeF. This page shows different car types, 
with their various parts labeled.
Z
6
a
How the entries work
Headword ram Part of speech Tenses of verbs b
The headword is printed  rams noun This shows whether  These three forms of 
c
at the start of the entry.   1 a male sheep. the word is a noun, verb,  the verb share show 
This shows you how to  adjective, interjection,  how it is written 
spell the word.  adverb, or preposition.  in the present,  d
Find out more about  continuous present, 
parts of speech on  and past tenses. 
Plural  e
pages 4–5. These tenses are 
This tells you how to  explained on page 4.
write a noun when there  f
is more than one of the 
thing it is referring to.  g
Here,rams is the plural  2 a device for pushing against 
of the headword ram. something with force. share
shares sharing shared  h
verb
Definition 
1 to have or  i
This part of the  use together.
entry explains what  2 to divide 
j
the headword means.  something into 
If a word has more than  parts to give 
one meaning, the first  to others. k
meaning given is  They used the log as a ram
normally the one that  to break down the door.
l
is most common.  ram verb They shared the melon.
Other meanings are 
m
listed below.
Sample sentence
n
The sentence that follows the definition gives 
Comparisons
you an example of how the headword is used. In 
o
The two forms of an adjective that are  the sample sentence the headword is always 
shown here are called the comparative and  written in heavy, black type like this: shared.
superlative. They are explained on page 5.  p
Rarer means “more rare” and rarest
means “the most rare.”  radioactivity q
noun
the energy released by the 
rare center of atoms breaking up  r
adjective in some substances. High 
unusual or not common. amounts of radioactivity can  s
be harmful to living things.
A rare blue 
t
morpho butterfly.
(cid:78) comparisons rarer rarest
(cid:78) opposite common u
Related words 
Other words that are 
Opposite Pronunciation guide  v
related to the 
This tells you the word  This guide helps you to pronounce  headword are listed 
that is the opposite  difficult words. It respells the  here. This related  w
of the headword. For  word so that you can sound out  word,radioactive,
example,common the letters. Part of the guide is in  They tested for radioactivity is the adjective  x
is the opposite of  heavy, black type. This shows you  outside the nuclear  that comes from 
the headword rare. which part of the word to stress,  power plant. the headword 
y
or say more loudly.  (cid:78) say ray-dee-oh-ak-tiv-i-tee radioactivity.
radioactive adjective
z
7
A
Dictionary games
B
See if you can solve these word puzzles,  with a friend. Try giving a point for each 
C using your dictionary to help you. The games  correct answer and then see which of you 
will help you learn how to use the dictionary  gets the highest score. The answers to 
D quickly and easily. You can play all of the  all the puzzles are somewhere in this 
games on your own, but you can also play  dictionary. Have fun!
E
F Alphabetical birds
How quickly can you arrange these 
G
12 bird names in alphabetical 
order? You could use the alphabet 
H at the side of the page to help you 
sort them out. For more help, turn 
to page 6, where alphabetical 
I
order is explained in detail. flamingo
J pelican
K parrot
L
M
N
O
P
Q
peacock
R
stork
S
T eagle
U
V
owl
W
X
Y ostrich
Z
duck budgerigar crane penguin
8