Research Guides: Reference Sources: Reference Databases

Encyclopedias, Dictionaries, & Reference

Britannica Academic Edition
Britannica Academic Edition provides full-text access to the Encyclopaedia Britannica and the Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary and Thesaurus. Britannica Academic includes additional relevant content, including websites, a world atlas, photos, articles, and news feeds.
Gale eBooks
Gale eBooks provides the full-text of subject-specific reference sources published by Gale. Entire books may be browsed or individual entries discovered using the search interface. All eBooks may be searched for using the Library Search Tool.
Leaving soon! Access expires August 31, 2025
Oxford English Dictionary (Oxford University Press)
The Oxford English Dictionary (OED) is a guide to the meaning, history, and pronunciation of words in the English language - past and present - from across the English-speaking world. It traces the usage of words through quotations from traditional print sources, online publications, and established web sources. The current online version of the OED is derived from the printed second edition of 1989, which is in turn based on the original edition published 1884-1928.
Reference Shelf (Salem Press)
Reference Shelf is a collection of eBooks published by Salem Press, covering topics in literature, history, science, health, and careers.

What is a Reference Source?

Reference Sources include sources of quick factual information and basic or specialized encyclopedias. While you would not cite these sources in a college level paper (unless a subject/specialized encyclopedia is requested by the instructor), you can use these sources to generate topic ideas, become more informed, or obtain background information on your topic.

Tutorials

Britannica Academic/Britannica Digital Learning [tutorial]