canonical: https://jentic.com/apis/collinsdictionary.com/collinsdictionary # Collins Dictionary API Jentic publishes the only available OpenAPI specification for Collins Dictionary API, keeping it validated and agent-ready. The Collins Dictionary API exposes Collins's English, thesaurus, and bilingual dictionary content covering definitions, translations, examples, and related entries. The API has 3 GET endpoints scoped per dictionary code: search, fetch entry by ID, and nearby alphabetical entries. Authentication is via an accesskey query parameter issued through api.collinsdictionary.com registration. ## For AI agents Search Collins dictionaries, fetch full entries by ID, and walk nearby alphabetical entries across English, thesaurus, and bilingual content through 3 endpoints. ## Scope Does not handle full-sentence translation, grammar checking, or speech recognition - use for dictionary entry lookup, search, and nearby browsing only. ## Capabilities - Search a Collins dictionary for entries matching a headword via GET /dictionaries/{dictionary}/search - Retrieve a complete dictionary entry with definitions, examples, and metadata via GET /dictionaries/{dictionary}/entries/{entryId} - Browse alphabetically adjacent entries via GET /dictionaries/{dictionary}/nearby - Choose between English, thesaurus, and bilingual dictionaries via the {dictionary} path parameter - Filter and paginate search results to power autocomplete or 'did you mean' suggestions ## Use cases ### Reading Comprehension Tools Power a reader app's tap-to-define feature by calling GET /dictionaries/english/search with the tapped word and rendering the first matching entry's definitions and examples. Collins's editorial content is well-suited to learners because each entry includes pronunciations, part-of-speech labels, and contextual examples. Pair with the thesaurus dictionary for synonym suggestions. Example prompt: Call GET /dictionaries/english/search?q=ephemeral and return the first entry's definitions and example sentences ### Bilingual Translation Helper Build a translation helper by selecting a bilingual dictionary code (e.g., english-french) and calling GET /dictionaries/{dictionary}/search with the source word. Collins returns the target-language headwords, sense numbers, and examples - enough context for a learner-grade translation tool without a full neural translation model. This is particularly useful for language-learning apps. Example prompt: Call GET /dictionaries/english-french/search?q=house and return the French headwords with their example sentences ### Crossword and Word Game Hints Build hint and validation features for word games using GET /dictionaries/{dictionary}/nearby to walk alphabetical neighbours and GET /dictionaries/{dictionary}/search to confirm a word exists. The nearby endpoint suits 'did you mean' UX and partial-match autocomplete because it returns surrounding entries from the live dictionary. Example prompt: Call GET /dictionaries/english/nearby?word=epheemral to surface near-spellings and GET /search to verify the corrected spelling exists ### AI Agent Lexical Lookups via Jentic Expose Collins lookups to an LLM agent through Jentic by searching for the operation and executing it with the returned schema. The accesskey is held in your Jentic One instance and applied at execution as a query parameter so the agent never sees the key. Useful for writing-assistant copilots and educational chatbots. Example prompt: Use Jentic to search 'look up an English word definition', load the GET /dictionaries/{dictionary}/search schema, and execute it with dictionary=english and q=alacrity ## Key endpoints | Method | Path | Description | | --- | --- | --- | | GET | /dictionaries/{dictionary}/search | Search dictionary entries | | GET | /dictionaries/{dictionary}/entries/{entryId} | Get an entry by ID | | GET | /dictionaries/{dictionary}/nearby | List alphabetically nearby entries | ## Key resources - **Search** — Search any Collins dictionary by headword or query string - **Entry** — Full dictionary entry with definitions, examples, and metadata - **Nearby** — Alphabetically adjacent entries for did-you-mean and autocomplete ## Why Jentic - **Setup:** Wiring the Collins Dictionary API by hand means passing its accesskey in the query against the api.collinsdictionary.com host and handling the search, entry, and nearby endpoints across each dictionary yourself. Through Jentic you install once, import Collins Dictionary from the API Directory, store the key once, and your agent calls it. - **Permission scoping:** Collins Dictionary is read-only lookup, so you scope by choosing the operations the agent may call: limit it to what it needs, such as searching for a word or fetching an entry, and other calls like nearby browsing are not included unless you add them. - **Credential handling:** Your Collins access key is stored once, encrypted, by your own Jentic One instance and injected into the query string at execution time. It never enters the agent's prompt, logs, or context. - **Discovery method:** Agents search Jentic by intent such as 'look up an English word definition' or 'search the dictionary', and Jentic returns the matching Collins operation with its input schema so the agent calls the right endpoint without browsing the reference docs. ## Related APIs - **Oxford Dictionaries API** — Comparable English and bilingual dictionary API from a major publisher - **Merriam-Webster Dictionary API** — Authoritative US English dictionary with student and learner editions - **Wordnik API** — Crowd and corpus-driven word data including word-of-the-day and frequency ## FAQ ### Why is there no official OpenAPI spec for Collins Dictionary API? Collins does not publish an OpenAPI specification. Jentic generates and maintains this spec so that AI agents and developers can call Collins Dictionary API via structured tooling. It is validated against the live API and kept up to date. Get started with Jentic One, the self-hosted execution layer. ### What authentication does the Collins Dictionary API use? Collins requires an accesskey query parameter on every call, obtained by registering at api.collinsdictionary.com. Through Jentic the key lives in the encrypted vault and is appended to the query at execution so the agent never sees it. ### Which Collins dictionaries are available through this API? The {dictionary} path parameter selects the dictionary code: English, English thesaurus, and several bilingual dictionaries (e.g., English-French, English-German, English-Spanish). Consult the Collins developer portal for the current list of supported codes. ### Can I get example sentences with the Collins Dictionary API? Yes. GET /dictionaries/{dictionary}/entries/{entryId} returns the full entry including definitions, part-of-speech labels, pronunciations, and example sentences. Search results from /search include entry IDs you can pass to /entries to fetch the full content. ### What are the rate limits for the Collins Dictionary API? The OpenAPI spec does not enumerate rate limits. Limits are tier-based and tied to your accesskey. HTTP error responses indicate when limits or subscription scope block a request. ### How do I look up a word's definition through Jentic? Search Jentic for 'look up an English word definition', load the GET /dictionaries/{dictionary}/search schema, and execute it with dictionary=english and q={word}. Jentic injects the accesskey from the vault and returns matching entries. ### Can I limit what my agent is allowed to do with the Collins Dictionary API? Yes. Because you run Jentic One yourself, your own rules decide which Collins operations the agent may call and which access key it uses. Since Collins is read-only lookup, you can allow just the operations it needs, such as searching a dictionary or fetching an entry by ID, while leaving nearby alphabetical browsing out until you choose to add it. The agent can only invoke the operations you have scoped for it.