Hi! With the OED, it has been like that at least since I started university in 2007. However, lots of public libraries have subscriptions. I just go to my library website, login, and follow the link to the OED. There are many other reference tools that are also included in my library card. Libraries rule!

Edit: you can check merriam-webster for free, I think

If you're after an online dictionary, I personally like Wiktionary.

Here's the word, if you were wondering:

Wasn’t it always a subscription? You really would only have easy access in a university library.

It’s an extensively researched and informative book, much more so than other dictionaries. That information gathering process has to be paid for somehow.

Cambridge dictionary is free.

Here is an alternative that aggregates from multiple sources: https://www.thefreedictionary.com/

While I do not oppose paying for definitions, there is someone confusing about collectively generated meaning being aggregated and packaged by one company for profit. A publicly maintained dictionary is a much much better alternative. I guarantee it would be more versatile and rigorous than this Oxford stuff.

There are plenty of other dictionaries and some of them are made of something called paper.

'$searchTerm def' on any search engine

This is why you should instead use Wiktionary and donate your child's entire college fund to the Wikimedia foundation

If the dictionary was free for all, how do you, OP, envision it would finance itself.

Specifically: hosting, web design, keeping the dictionary up to date (new words, linguistic shift, new entomological research etc).

Please, elaborate. Until then you're a choosing beggar.

I personally use collins english dictionary. It's the best online dictionary I've found (best descriptions).

thats not bad actually. joey tribbiani had to pay $50 and he only got the v words

I think Cambridge dictionary is free.

$29.95 a month? ok. The $100 a year is… better I guess.

Surprised Wikipedia hasn’t put something like this is place yet. Maybe their end-year donations push brings in enough to hold it off.

The unabridged OED has never been cheap to buy. I'm honestly surprised it took this long.

One way to get access to ~~OED~~ ODE without paying a cent is by using kindle app. When you highlight an English word, if will open the dict. You can search for any word from there.

FYI Running Ublock Origin is enough to grant access to this dictionary, among others. At least seems to work for me without any paywalls (unless its a geoblock? I'm looking at it from the Nordics).

It works OK for me, but I'm in the UK so maybe it's subscription only for foreigners.