author
Noah Webster
1758–1843
Best known for the dictionary that helped define American English, this energetic teacher and reformer wanted the new United States to have books, spelling, and language of its own. His work shaped how generations of Americans learned to read, write, and spell.
7 Audiobooks
Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (2nd 100 Pages)
by Noah Webster
Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (1st 100 Pages)
by Noah Webster
A Collection of Essays and Fugitiv Writings On Moral, Historical, Political, and Literary Subjects
by Noah Webster
The Gutenberg Webster's Unabridged Dictionary: Section R
by Project Gutenberg, Noah Webster
The Gutenberg Webster's Unabridged Dictionary: Section M, N, and O
by Project Gutenberg, Noah Webster
The Gutenberg Webster's Unabridged Dictionary: Section S
by Project Gutenberg, Noah Webster
About the author
Born in West Hartford, Connecticut, in 1758, Noah Webster grew up during the American Revolution and studied at Yale. He worked as a teacher, writer, editor, and lawyer, but education and language became the work he is remembered for most.
Webster believed the young United States needed its own standards instead of relying on British models. That belief led him to create schoolbooks such as The American Spelling Book—the famous "Blue-Backed Speller"—which was used by generations of children, and later An American Dictionary of the English Language in 1828, a landmark in American reference publishing.
He was more than a dictionary-maker: he was also a strong voice for education reform and for a distinct American cultural identity. Webster died in New Haven, Connecticut, in 1843, but his name remains closely tied to the history of American English.