# &app; Manual V&manrevision;

## Introduction

The &app; application enables you to look up an online dictionary for definitions and correct spellings of words.

## Getting Started

### To Start &app;

You can start &app; in the following ways:

Applications menu

- Choose Accessories Dictionary.

Command line

- Type `gnome-dictionary -a`, then press Return.

As a panel applet

- To add the GDict applet to a panel, right-click on the panel, then choose Add to Panel Dictionary Lookup .

  #### GDict Applet

  Shows GDict applet.

  To start the &app; application, click on the Lookup button.

If your computer is behind a firewall, you might need to use the SOCKS protocol to access the dictionary server and run the application successfully. Contact your system administrator for more information.

### When You Start &app;

When you start &app;, the following window is displayed.

#### &app; Window

Shows &app; main window. Contains titlebar, menubar, Word text box, and Look Up Word button.

The &app; window consists of the following elements:

Menubar

- Contains standard menus.

Word field

- Use this field to enter the word that you want to look up in the dictionary.

Look Up Word button

- Click on this button to look up the definition of the word in the Word field.

Display area

- &app; displays the definition of a word in this area of the window.

Statusbar

- &app; displays status messages in the statusbar.

## Usage

### To Look Up the Definition of a Word

To look up the definition of a word, perform the following steps:

1. Type the word that you want to look up in the Word text box.

2. Click Look Up Word. &app; performs one of the following actions:

   - If &app; finds a definition for the word, the application displays the definition in the display area.

   - If &app; does not find a definition for the word, the application opens the Check spelling dialog and checks the spelling of the word. You can select a word in the Check spelling dialog, then click Look Up Word.

3. Use the scrollbar to scroll through the definition.

### To Check the Spelling of a Word

To check the spelling of a word, perform the following steps:

1. Choose Dictionary Check Spelling .

2. In the Word text box of the Check spelling dialog, type the word that you want to check.

3. Select the Search Strategy that you want to use.

4. Click Spell. &app; displays correct spellings for the word in the display area.

5. Use the scrollbar to scroll through the spellings.

6. To look up the definition of a word that is displayed in the display area, select the word, then click Look Up Word. The application displays the dictionary definition in the display area of the Dictionary dialog.

### To Clear the Display Area

To clear the display area of the Dictionary dialog, choose Edit Clear.

### To Copy Text to Another Application

To copy the text in the display area to another application, perform one of the following tasks:

- To copy all of the text, choose Edit Select All, then choose Edit Copy.

- To copy some of the text, select the lines that you want to copy, then choose Edit Copy.

### To Find Text in the Display Area

To find text in the display area, perform the following steps:

1. Choose Edit Find.

2. Type the string that you want to find in the Search for text box of the Find dialog, then press Return. You cannot use wildcards.

3. To find the next occurrence of the word, choose Edit Find Next.

## Preferences

To configure &app;, choose Edit Preferences .

Server

- Use this text box to specify the online server that &app; accesses. Click Default Server to revert to the default setting.

  Default: dict.org.

Port

- Use this text box to specify the port number that &app; uses to access the dictionary server. Click Default Port to revert to the default setting.

  Default: 2628.

Smart lookup

- When selected, this option launches a search for alternative spellings if no instances of the entered spelling are found..

  Default: selected.

Database

- When &app; accesses the dictionary server, &app; downloads a list of the dictionary databases that are available. Use this drop-down list box to select the databases that you want to use.

  Default: Search all databases.

Default strategy

- When &app; accesses the dictionary server, &app; downloads a list of the search strategies that are available on the server. Use this drop-down list box to select the search strategy that you want to use.

  Default: Match words within Levenshtein distance one.