You can use dictionaries, encyclopedias and other reference works to:
Some useful dictionaries and encyclopedias are listed below.
Literary Reference Center Plus includes full-text resources focusing on plays/drama, poetry, religious literature, and children's literature. This database also includes volumes of fantasy/science fiction, contemporary literature, and world philosophy, and literary study guides.
Oxford dictionary of national biography (ODNB) is the national record of men and women who have shaped British history and culture, worldwide, from the Romans to the 21st century. The Dictionary offers concise, up-to-date biographies written by named, specialist authors.
The Oxford English Dictionary (OED) is widely regarded as the accepted authority on the English language. It is an unsurpassed guide to the meaning, history, and usage of 500,000 words and phrases past and present, from across the English-speaking world.
