Free English Dictionary API by Harika

Quick Start — get a definition in one call

Use the /define endpoint with a word query parameter. Example:

GET https://dictionary-api-7hmy.onrender.com/define?word=apple

curl example

curl "https://dictionary-api-7hmy.onrender.com/define?word=apple"

Node (fetch) example

fetch('https://dictionary-api-7hmy.onrender.com/define?word=apple')
  .then(r => r.json())
  .then(console.log)
  .catch(console.error)

Example response (clean JSON)

{
  "word":"apple",
  "partOfSpeech":"noun",
  "definition":"A common, round fruit produced by the tree Malus domestica, cultivated in temperate climates.",
  "example":"She took a bite of the ripe apple.",
  "phonetics":[{"text":"/ˈæp.əl/","audio":"https://..."}]
}

Endpoints

• GET / — health check (returns status).
• GET /words — returns the in-memory sample list (for demo).
• GET /define?word=WORD — returns a simplified definition object for WORD.

Query parameters

• word (required) — the English word you want to lookup, e.g. ?word=hello.

HTTP status codes

• 200 — success (definition returned)
• 400 — missing ?word= parameter
• 404 — word not found
• 500 — provider or server error

Notes, rate limits & best practices

Provider: This service uses dictionaryapi.dev under the hood and returns a simplified JSON response for easier consumption.

Rate limits: None enforced yet on this endpoint. If you expect heavy traffic, add a caching layer (CDN or server-side) and rate limiting to avoid overuse.

Usage tips:

1. Cache popular queries on the client for a short time.
2. Validate the word parameter (trim and lowercase) before calling the API.
3. Use the returned phonetics audio URLs if you need pronunciation playback in your UI.

Demo & screenshot

Live example output (deployed at Render):

API base: https://dictionary-api-7hmy.onrender.com/define?word=playground

FAQ

Is the API free?

Yes — completely free and open for developers to use. No API key required.

Can I use it in production?

Yes, but be careful: the free Render instance can spin down (cold start) if idle. Consider self-hosting or a paid Render plan for production reliability.

Do you provide bulk lookup?

Not currently — this service is optimized for single-word lookups. For bulk needs, add a caching layer or request a custom plan.

Contribute / Source code

The code is available on GitHub: github.com/haarikha/dictionary-api.

If you want to contribute or open an issue, please use the GitHub repo.