At the end of August we changed the way dictionary entries are split up in some of our titles. We are bringing related definitions together which we hope will improve the user experience. Hopefully, this will be a 'silent' improvement but we know our API consumers like to be kept updated. Below we've provided answers to the questions we're anticipating.
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Q: What will this mean for users?
A: Users are more likely to find the definition in the first result; there will be fewer but longer entries.
We have found that users (including API consumers) want more information on one page and prefer not to click through search results. So, we are merging the entries which relate to a single headword.
This will mean that users will not have to choose the sense they want to get the definition, all definitions for a single headword will be displayed on one page. In the main British (Advanced Learner's) and American English datasets, definitions of a single word are spread across multiple entries, e.g. searching for "find" begins with the following four results:
find verb (DISCOVER)
find verb (EXPERIENCE A FEELING)
find verb (JUDGE)
find noun
In the future, these will be one entry with separate definitions for all of these meanings. NB: many entries already have multiple meanings (look at "find verb (DISCOVER)").
Q: What is a headword?
A: For us, a headword is a word with a particular spelling and pronunciation.
All senses in the same headword will be brought together in one entry. Some words will continue to be separate, for instance record (verb) and record (noun) because they have different pronunciations. We will keep this under review.
Phrasal verbs and idioms will remain separate entries as well.
Q: Will the API change?
A: The API itself will not change, this is a content change.
The XML and HTML of the entries will change (not the XML/JSON or the endpoints). The search results will also change, because there will be fewer entries.
Q: Will this break my application?
A: If your code does not make any assumptions about the structure of entries, it should continue to work.
If you have used references to specific entryIds, those entries may no longer exist - perform a new search and it will be fine. Entries will conform to the same DTD, but if your application reads from the XML structure directly, be advised that the path to senses may include another block element (pos-block) compared to before.
Please let us know if you have any other questions about these exciting changes!
Best wishes,
Cambridge Dictionaries Online team
