Dictionary API Documentation

Welcome to the Dictionary API. This RESTful API provides programmatic access to our comprehensive linguistic database, including definitions, etymology, synonyms, antonyms, pronunciation audio, and real-time translations across 100+ languages.

Authentication

The Dictionary API uses API keys to authenticate requests. You can view and manage your API keys in the developer dashboard. All API requests must be made over HTTPS.

Authenticate your requests by including the Authorization header with a Bearer token:

Authorization: Bearer <YOUR_API_KEY>

GET /words/{id}

Retrieve comprehensive data for a specific word, including definitions, phonetics, part of speech, and example sentences.

curl -X GET "https://api.dictionary.com/v1/words/ephemeral?lang=en" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY"

{
  "word": "ephemeral",
  "phonetic": "/əˈfem.ər.əl/",
  "pos": "adjective",
  "definitions": [
    {
      "meaning": "Lasting for a very short time",
      "example": "The ephemeral beauty of cherry blossoms",
      "domain": "general"
    }
  ],
  "audio": "https://cdn.dictionary.com/audio/ephemeral.mp3",
  "etymology": "Latin ephemera, from Greek ephēmeros"
}

GET /words/search

Search for words matching a query term. Supports fuzzy matching and autocomplete suggestions.

GET /synonyms/{word}

Retrieve a ranked list of synonyms and antonyms for a given word, grouped by semantic relevance.

{
  "word": "quick",
  "synonyms": ["fast", "rapid", "swift", "hasty", "brisk"],
  "antonyms": ["slow", "sluggish", "leisurely"],
  "context_score": 0.94
}

POST /translate

Translate text or phrases between supported languages with context-aware neural models.

{
  "text": "The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog",
  "source_lang": "en",
  "target_lang": "es",
  "preserve_formatting": true
}

Error Codes

The Dictionary API uses standard HTTP status codes to indicate success or failure. Errors are returned as JSON with a consistent structure.

{
  "error": {
    "code": "RATE_LIMIT_EXCEEDED",
    "message": "You have exceeded 1000 requests per minute",
    "retry_after": 45,
    "documentation_url": "https://docs.dictionary.com/errors"
  }
}

Rate Limits

API requests are limited based on your plan tier. When you exceed the limit, you will receive a 429 Too Many Requests response.