A new database, the Visual Thesaurus, claims to be “an interactive dictionary and thesaurus which creates word maps that blossom with meanings and branch to related words” – this means that it explains the meanings of words by way of pictograms, showing related terms and concepts. More interestingly, perhaps, than the database, and word-search facility, is the series of articles accessible from VT’s front page: these concern many aspects of language, origin and use of words, and the practice of different kinds of writing. This should be a major resource for anyone involved with language and writing. The Visual Thesaurus is accessed via the A-Z Databases page, using linked passwords.
