American Heritage Dict

Submitted by Amir on Saturday, November 2, 2013.

Last modified

Saturday, January 19, 2019

Description of App

The AMERICAN HERITAGE ENGLISH DICTIONARY is one of the most comprehensive and accessible resources available on any mobile device. It's is the perfect solution to use at school, in the office, or at home! Exhaustively researched and thoroughly revised, the Fifth Edition of THE AMERICAN HERITAGE® DICTIONARY OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE contains 10,000 new words and phrases, over 4,000 dazzling new full-color images, and authoritative, up-to-date guidance on usage. Thousands of definitions have been revised in rapidly changing fields such as astronomy and biology, geographical entries and maps have been completely updated, and the dictionary’s signature feature notes on word history, synonymy, and language variation have all been enhanced and improved. Word meanings are made easier to understand with thousands of new quotations from classic and contemporary writers. Etymologies explaining word origins and development have been newly created or revised to reflect the very latest scholarship. Many words are traced back to their roots in prehistory through two unique appendixes showing word roots in ancient Indo-European and Semitic. Also includes advanced search and language tools that have become the staple of quality language apps from MobiSystems. SEARCH TOOLS – effortlessly find words using a clear, functional, and easy-to-use interface. The integrated search tools activate automatically the moment you start typing: * Search autocomplete helps find words quickly by displaying predictions as you type * Keyword lookup allows you to search within compound words and phrases * An automatic ‘Fuzzy filter’ to correct word spelling, as well as ‘Wild card’ ('*' or '?') to replace a letter or entire parts of a word * Camera search automatically searches for words in the camera viewfinder and displays results LEARNING TOOLS – engaging features that help you further enhance your vocabulary: * ‘Favorites’ feature to create custom folders with lists of words from the extensive library * ‘Recent’ list to help you easily review looked-up words * ‘Word of the day’ section to help expand your vocabulary every day PREMIUM FEATURES: * Offline mode - look up words without internet connection * Audio pronunciation - find out how to pronounce words with integrated sound * No ads - no more in-app ads * Thesaurus base with audio – access the full capacity of the language app CONTACT US: If you have any questions, feedback or suggestions please contact us directly at support@mobisystems.com.

Version

8.2.6

Free or Paid

Paid

Apple Watch Support

iOS Version

10.02.

Device(s) App Was Tested On

iPhone

Accessibility Comments

AHD 5 which had become totally inaccessible after its takeover by MobiSystems is now partially accessible. The app's Definition text control now appears as a single control, meaning you can't move around definitions, definition senses, examples, notes and so on via left/right flicks, posing a serious usability issue.

VoiceOver Performance

VoiceOver reads a few page elements.

Button Labeling

Most buttons are clearly labeled.

Usability

There are some accessibility issues with this app, but it can still be used if you are willing to tolerate these issues and learn how to work around them.

Other Comments

The app is free to try, but costs $19.99 to unlock its features.

App Store Link

https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/american-heritage-english/id1118316289?mt=8

Developer's Website

http://www.mobisystems.com

Developer's Twitter Username

@MobiSystems

Recommendations

0 people have recommended this app

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Comments

Hi, just so users know I

Hi, just so users know I think accessibility issues mentioned above have been fixed with this app since it returned to the app store.
also, you don't have to buy this version which forces you to make an in app purchase, if you have a look at the related tab on the app store for other apps buy this developer, the exact same dictionary fifth edition is available where you pay up front for the app but then you don't have to worry about an in app purchase continuing to work. I payed for this version of the app so I don't have to worry about activating the app if I reinstall it, this is now my copy of the app, with nothing extra to do if I should reinstall it, as when this returned to the store earlier in the year my in app purchase stopped working and I just couldn't be bothered to work with support for days getting it working again when I could pay an up front fee for the dictionary and not have to worry about this again.
you will know you have the right dictionary as it will be labelled as this app is the fifth edition but just have a button with a price next to it instead of a free one, and the description won't talk about an in app purchase. I guess that other version is really intended for owners of a paper dictionary who have a code to get it for free. We are now up to version 6 of this app.
In case its useful the link to the version of the dictionary you can pay for that isn't an in app purchase is
https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/american-heritage-dictionary/id66205465…

V6.1, updated app and modified URL

As both the paid app and the one requiring an in-app purchase were updated, I decided to alter this post. As such, the URL to the paid release is posted here as, according to the previous commenter, it might be easier for people to purchase the app up front rather than activate it later with an in-app purchase.
What's new in V6.1? Semiannual editorial update including hundreds of revisions and new words. Also includes updates for iOS8.

really there is no point for

really there is no point for us using the app needing the in app purchase because you can't do anything with the in app purchase version anyway till you make it, so you might as well just buy the up front version and then the app is yours and you don't have to worry about in app purchases or anything breaking, the app is yours no activation or anything needed should you reinstall. I guess only those with paper copies of the dictionary benefit from the in app purchase because they can enter the free code they get in there paper dictionary to get the app but as we are unlikely to have a paper dictionary its probably far easier to just pay upfront for the app and they are the same price anyway.

In most but not all circumstances

That's true, Alex. That's why I've modified the post to highlight the paid version. However, that doesn't mean the in-app purchase option is limited to the paper dictionary. I gained access to AHD 4 (and later AHD 5) via the in-app purchase option and have had no difficulty getting it up and running after updating to various releases of iOS.

Oh yes I know what you mean,

Oh yes I know what you mean, I think the reason in app purchase broke for me was because of them taking the dictionary out of the store for a while. I don't say the in app purchase option is limited to those with a paper dictionary, I am just not sure why you would choose to use it over the up front payment option if you didn't have a paper dictionary.

Mine didn't expire

Quite interestingly, after that hiatus my in-app purchase license was automatically activated when AHD 5 returned to the App Store. Purchasing it up front is definitely easier but I had a license code for the non-paying option and used that. At any event, I'm wondering why you re-purchased the app when you could have contacted tech support and they could have re-activated your in-app purchase license.