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Merriam-Webster Dictionary App Complaints & User Negative Comments 2024
Merriam-Webster Dictionary app received 48 complaints, negative comments and reviews by users. Have you ever had a bad experience using Merriam-Webster Dictionary? Can you share your negative thoughts about merriam-webster dictionary?
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Merriam-Webster Dictionary for Negative User Reviews
✓ Primary -early High School - level dictionaryFrequently unable to define significant words! Very Limited scope or usefulness. However it is free, hence associated with adverts that slow you up when making a 2nd search..Version: 4.6.6
✓ HandyHelpful and can be used offline.Version: 5.6.1
✓ Your advertising sends me to terrible sitesI like the dictionary. But I have ceased to use your app since it sends me to random sites to download apple apps from unsavory sites. I do not want advertising to join Ashely Madison to have an affair on my wife. I do not want to be sent to a gambling app. Sorry but unless you get some principles and ethics then you do not deserve my support..Version: 5.0.3
✓ Weekly challengeMostly I like this app, just disappointed though because the “weekly challenges “ do not renew every week. I love the word games and always look forward to getting a new one..Version: 4.6.6
✓ ReviewThe advertising takes up far too much space in the app, at times interfering with the function itself..Version: 2.1
✓ Annoying missing wordsNot that rarely I find words the dictionary just does not recognise, which does not give me great confidence in its authority or scope. This morning it told me the word ‘lapsarian’ does not exist. Not acceptable. I might be ditching it..Version: 5.6.6
✓ SynonymHard to find thesaurus of the word ..Version: 5.5.4
✓ $180 DictionaryI find it ridiculous all these apps that want to charge a yearly subscription. The basic version of this app is $3.99 per year. Getting fed up with the ads and unwilling to pay a yearly subscription, I pulled out a dictionary I bought in high school in 1978, which I paid about $5 for; to date, it cost me $0.11 per year, and it’s decreasing every year. Had I subscribed to this app for the same timeframe I would have spent $180+. Annndddd, simply asking Siri is free!.Version: 5.6.7
✓ Somewhat disappointedI had the highest level of subscription for this app, and it worked quite well… Until I found out that you don't actually get the whole content of this dictionary through this app. Over time, I have come across a lot of different words that I wanted to look up, but this app always came up empty… But when I went to the website of this dictionary, I found those terms! As a result, I have decided to cancel my paid subscription and will not renew it, because the website actually provides more information, more words, more terms, and I don't even have to pay..Version: 5.6.8
✓ DisappointedPaid for app but still keep getting ads to subscribe and all the other ads given to non-subscribers. Tried but couldn’t find any solution to get that problem fixed. Wasted my money!.Version: 5.6.7
✓ Great Dictionary but games are horribly flawedI love this app. It’s easy to use and a great dictionary. But the word games available on the app have one serious, obvious flaw. The games are fun and I enjoy playing them. There are different levels of difficulty and you have to earn a certain number of points in order to advance to the next level. The number of points required to advance to the next level is ridiculous. For instance, in one of their vocabulary games you must earn 2,800 points to advance from the light difficulty to medium. You get 10 questions to reach this number, with a randomized mixture of questions worth different points. Of the many questions that I have received, I’ve only identified 3 different point questions. 100, 200, and 300. I often get mostly 100 point questions, some 200 point questions, and one or two 300 point questions. Some simple math points out a grave oversight. Even if I answer all of the questions correctly, I would need a lot of 300 point questions to make reaching the next level possible. Since the type of questions seem randomized and have never added up to equal 2,800, how am I supposed to advance? If there’s nothing that I’m missing, whoever designed the games lacked some essential logic..Version: 5.7.0
✓ Ads with sound.I've been using the free version of this app for as long I can remember and it was great. I get why you guys show adverts for the free version and I have nothing against it, but recently I've been getting adverts with blasting sound everytime I open this app. Its infuriating..Version: 4.6.6
✓ They broke somethingI have been using this app for years and always had the red title screen when I clicked it. After I looked up a word, I always would tap the back arrow to return to the initial screen. The back arrow is no longer there. I am disappointed and irritated. It changes the whole feel. Yes, there is a bar to go back to previously seen words, but I normally don't need to go back, as I have already seen that definition. Maybe they have a developer with a really poor memory. UPDATE: The developer responded that "You can still go back at anytime by swiping from the left side of the screen." My question is why they think that's good enough. There is no help in the app to tell you that. The FAQ on the m-w website doesn't mention it either. Do you expect your longtime users to read your minds? Just put it back, please. That made it obvious and intuitive, which are two important qualities in an app. MORE: Swiping from the left side worked a couple of times but is not working now..Version: 4.3
✓ New update: can't close adsI like this dictionary... The new update whenever ads pop up you can't close it though. I have to literally close the app and restart it every time I look up words. THIS IS SO FRUSTRATING, please fix..Version: 5.0.4
✓ Good, but some ads can’t be closedIt’s a great source for many words and even meanings, however, some ads when they end and the X is available to close the ad, the X doesn’t work and I have to close and reset the ad and then search again. It does sometimes quit randomly as well. Although this is not a “serious” issue, it happens enough that I wanted to share this in my review. As an avid reader, I need to look up meanings, phrases, and the like and it becomes quite cumbersome to constantly close and restart the app again. Hoping that this review will be heeded by the developers and omitted soon. Its typically the ad with a dragon and the X is up by the time in the top right corner. There are a few tigers that also act this way, but the dragon seems to be the common culprit. It’s visible, but it doesn’t take action when pressed. I have tried multiple times, but it will not close..Version: 5.0.6
✓ Saved Words...Do not sync between devices, but they do show in the same list on the web version. Please address this flaw..Version: 5.0.5
✓ FrustratingI don’t understand why there would be two versions of this app in the App Store, a paid and unpaid. When the unpaid version has TONS of words that can’t even be accessed without being prompted to buy the full version. In addition to that, every third word lookup seems to bring up an advertisement that cannot be exited out from. Just a never-ending pop up that you have to close and restart the app just to get out of. If this is the FREE version, than advertisements are necessary, I get that. But at least give me the option to close out of it after 15-20 seconds or something. Also, why put in words with definitions that are unavailable, unless you pay? Isn’t there a whole other app for that? If I’m limited to only a certain number of words, make that clear. Don’t go around teasing this whole array of words that aren’t even accessible to the free-using people that chose to install the app. I downloaded for the sake of convenience. Seemed like this would be a solid alternative to using google every time I needed quick access to a definition. I mean this is a DICTIONARY, right? Back to google it is..Version: 5.0.4
✓ Same App, Pay TwiceI, like many other Merriam-Webster users, bought their Collegiate dictionary a while back for a purchase price of AUD$30. Now, with iOS 11, they stop support for that app and—weeks later—release a “brand new” dictionary requiring existing customers to pay again ... to remove ads. This is shameful behaviour. Imagine you buy an app and then it stopped working. The developer refuses to update it. The next day, the same company releases basically the same app, but wants you to pay again to use it. Absolutely shameful behaviour, and I’m surprised Apple would allow this..Version: 4.3
✓ Premium App vs Subscription?Great dictionary app! However, Merriam does not make clear the difference between the Premium app (one time payment of $4.99) and the Original app with a yearly subscription ($2.99/year and $5.99/year). The premium app lists all of it’s features in the App Store, but the Original (free) app says you pay $2.99 for removal of ads and $5.99 for “additional features”. There is no information about this on there website either, so how is a consumer supposed to decide on which to purchase? Will the Premium app eventually be phased out for just the subscription model? I purchased the $5.99 subscription before I knew about the Premium app. I remember there being information on the features before purchase. But now that I’ve purchased it, the section with the features has disappeared. I wasn’t aware of a one time payment premium app, so now I want to compare and see if I’m getting my money’s worth. This information needs to be readily available and in plain sight. Can someone from Merriam please respond with this information? I email you but got and auto response saying “ Due to the volume of correspondence we receive, we unfortunately cannot personally respond to each message” and the generic info included in that email did not answer my question. Otherwise great app. Best dictionary for Americans..Version: 5.0.3
✓ Webster vs Merriam-Webster dictionaryYears ago I purchased the Webster’s 3rd international dictionary for my iPad and it was wonderful and the price was outrageous. It was about $79. But my wife has a masters in linguistics so it was well worth it. Then one day it was gone and an updated replacement was the much more limited Merriam-Webster dictionary. What a let down after having the really useful, and informative informative version. To add insult to injury, the company now wants me to pay a yearly fee to just get rid of the ads, and even more money to get a richer version of this new limited replacement. When you pay $79 for an app, the least they could do would be to give you one without ads when they replace the original with a watered down version. The new version is OK but I am forced back to using the hard backed book version when at home and I sure don’t lug it around with me so I’m stuck with the puny app version when away from home. What a disappointment..Version: 5.0.3
✓ Need More Time for Challenge QuizzesI like the app and I love playing the weekly challenge games. However, I am considering not renewing my subscription because you guys are stingy with the challenge games and it is annoying. 10 seconds to read the question, think, analyze, and select the correct answer? The short time is especially noticeable since some of the questions are as long as a paragraph, in addition to the fact that we have to sometimes scroll down to see all four answer options because they’re so long. 10 seconds is not enough time. Give a time of at least 15 seconds time for each quiz question in every game. Remember, some users use these weekly challenges as an opportunity to further familiarize themselves with obscure words. Make the learning process and information retention a friendlier interaction, not tedious and undermining to users..Version: 4.3.2
✓ GangaPretty handy but many, many words do not appear in the thesaurus although they are rarely missed in the dictionary. Certainly a leaning towards US rather than UK but still useful..Version: 4.6.5
✓ Good.This dictionary is good all, my family have this dictionary and love it. It’s easy to use. I personally think it great. Much better then any other of the dictionary I have had. I think it should have 3-4 stars..Version: 5.0.2
✓ GoodHas everything you need and word of the day is great. The games are boring to play though and aren’t engaging.Version: 5.6.8
✓ Deficient appSearch a word, view a list of words from the search, tap a word, when you tab back, you lose the search result and your back at the beginning and you have to type your search string back again. Annoying..Version: 5.6.7
✓ Horrible to useIncredibly buggy and laggy, with ads popping up constantly. Looking for a new dictionary app, as this one’s now unusable. So disappointing.Version: 5.2.0
✓ How to contact the app developerInspite of yearly subscription continue to show adverts on iphone. Removed ads on ipad but beleaguered by ads on iphone. No option to contact app developer is annoying.Version: 4.4.1
✓ Good but it keeps crashingThe app is very useful and fun however it keeps crashing and that gets annoying..Version: 5.0.5
✓ What! I thought I paid for no ads?!!!Merriam-Webster now seem to think ads for their services aren’t ads. “Supercharge your dictionary” (i.e. pay a larger annual subscription) is plastered across the top of screen. This small betrayal, or perhaps carelessness, spoils an otherwise good app..Version: 5.0.2
✓ Pay annually to remove ads! Not happyThis is a rip off having to pay to remove your ads annually. Besides your ads are mostly inappropriate for kids. I would like to give you a 'zero' star..Version: 4.6.6
✓ The new look is not good at all!I really liked the old look please fix!!!.Version: 5.0.0
✓ Help me when I spell the word wrongI purchased this app because I listen to a lot of history books on Audible. when listening to the books, I often hear words that I’ve never heard before in French phrases that don’t make any sense to me. A couple words of encounter for the first time in the past couple days are peripatetic and calumny, for example. Call me a fool, but I guessed the spelling wrong on both these words by one letter, and as a result, obtain no results in search. In contrast, a quick DuckDuckGo search automatically corrected my spelling error and presented the Merriam-Webster dictionary page directly from the search results as the first result. I just find myself in a situation, where if I have Internet access, it makes much more sense to just search it in a web browser, then rather than use the app. The only time this app is of any use to me as if I am caught completely without Internet access and I need to access something off-line. Otherwise, I end up trying to search it in the app, and then just going to Google it instead. i’ll give me the app to stars Soli book as it doesn’t have a spelling correction future or offer any suggested similar spellings. I think that people like me, who hear the word rather than see it, needs to know about this lack of a feature before they purchase. If Merriam-Webster wishes to add this feature in the future, or if it’s already there and I just don’t know how to use it, I’ll upgrade my rating to five stars..Version: 5.2.0
✓ Satisfied ☺️I rated it 1 star because most people read the negative reviews first. This app not only gives you clear definitions and examples of words that can help you improve your vocabulary, but it also has little games to test it! Although it’s game section is not as flashy and competitive as other word games out there, it gets the job done if you are looking for a way to improve your vocabulary skills, reading skills, and comprehension skills. Sometimes the simplest things work the best. In order to remain good at something, one must continue to practice it. Only then would ones’ knowledge/skills progress. Literacy in all forms (reading, writing, speaking, hearing/comprehension) is a skill that needs practice daily, yet less people each day participate in it. It kinda makes you wonder/understand why people are the way they are, how it correlates to the construction of our society today/future, and how it reflects our treatment towards each other as human beings. Spread love and understanding, not hate and control.❤️✝️✊🏿🏳️🌈🚺.Version: 5.6.5
✓ Ad close button not workingIt's very sad to say this that when a ad pops up the close button doesn't work even after 1 minutes. This problem is persisting for quite a bit now. Plz solve this.Version: 5.0.4
✓ Great but not for iPhone 12Love this app but cannot enjoy the full experience. When adverts play I am unable to click out on the X as it is placed on the screen at the very top right hand side and instead the phone will drop down the control panel. So I have to close the app to start again! The X needs to placed elsewhere or larger. But great content.Version: 5.7.0
✓ Took too long to find the word and showed least common definitionSearched for involute; it took about 45 seconds of a white screen with a loading bar to pull the word up and it showed the least technical usage not the formal usage which you would expect. I had been spoiled by successfully searching and finding definitions using a web browser which pops up the definition in the bar before you can even finish typing but I figured I’d download the dictionary just to have it and use it when offline etc, but I’d rather not delay my searching time by about 100x just to use the app especially when it didn’t even show the formal usage definition which by the way is “involved or intricate”. Ads are unappealing too. Every app these days has to sacrifice user experience to make an extra penny and it all unfortunate but I suppose in a world where you can put out basically any low level of product and still catch some users in the funnel; it’s worth it to the developers, as the pennies add up. You aren’t getting mine however, or any user who has respect for their experience ..Version: 5.2.0
✓ Trouble contacting supportDownloaded app, selected the $2.99 app free option before trying the “trial period” simply trusting this would be a good experience because I’ve used this dictionary before and I grew up knowing this “dictionary name”; so, based on the rank and the name I felt safe to spend a few dollars for an ad free experience - but, the app doesn’t appear on (any of) my home screens, and it’s not ad-free. I can only access the app when I search the App Store for it - and select the blue “open” button, so my phone thinks I have the app, and it does open, but I can’t find the “app” on my fine with the “phone app search” method with the “swipe down” motion. When I’m in the app as accessed through the App Store it says I’m a paid subscriber, but it’s not ad free, and I can’t access the app outside of the App Store. So, I’m looking around for a way to contact support and I land of the MW website for help and the advice is to contact apple for support. This is not a great solution. I just want to send a message to MW. I don’t know what to do so I’m posting this review hoping to get help or get a refund..Version: 5.7.1
✓ Horrible and Useless Scholar JargonIn recent years Websters have changed from peoples dictionary to scholars’ dictionary. Each word is explained with scholar jargon. If they change the dictionary to people’s dictionary useful to high school, college and university students as well as the general public, I will download the dictionary again. For now the dictionary has been sitting in my phone taking great space without any use while I used Google with much better success for finding the exact meaning of the words. I am erasing Webster’s from my phone now..Version: 5.6.7
✓ Disappointing money grabAds were too much so we paid to have them removed, now they are “offering” a yearly subscription to “supercharge” the dictionary, which means they embraced the money grab style of other lousy vendors that lost us as customers. What a shameful practice to build revenue at the expense of loyal customers. Greed at the highest level! What’s the use of an app like this then? The dictionary is now limited and useless. Pointless to continue using it if they continue doing this..Version: 5.0.2
✓ No audio pronunciationPlease fix the audio pronunciation problem. Never seems to work. Yes I have a strong internet connection..Version: 4.4.1
✓ Dictionary?Pain to use. Too much scrolling or they don’t list a lot of words. Google is quicker & easier to use. Have cancelled.Version: 5.7.1
✓ Dictionary: great, Ads: TERRIBLEI typically don’t mind viewing ads for the trade off of a free ad but the pop up ads here are extremely bothersome. They “pop up” and take over the entire screen and shouting at you in an outrageously loud voice asking you to complete an action or interact with the ad in some way all while displaying the false appearance of an X in the upper right corner making you think you can click out of the ad, but nooo you can’t, the X is fake and doesn’t work so your only option is to close the app and reopen it. Then promptly after reopening the app another similar ad pops up and you go thru the same ordeal. Like I said I don’t mind viewing ads, but these ads are just outrageous. They are so loud and since you’re not expecting it, they totally catch you off guard and startle the hell out of you. I realize the remedy to this is paying for a subscription, but honestly I find these ads so rude and in your face that I’m turned off by the entire app and am considering uninstalling it and going back to the old dictionary app I was using before..Version: 5.0.4
✓ Very good informative, I licked very muchGood, Excilent.Version: 5.6.8
✓ Scribble doesn’t work properlyAll brilliant, but when it come to scribble with Apple Pencil, it easily mistrigger the mult-task option (the three dots at the top of the app window) so easily. Also, the search field is too small to write in. If they can be fixed. I will say 4 stars at least..Version: 5.6.0
✓ Pictures!!This app is ok it is just that I think pics would make it even more better. It’s just that pics make it better.Version: 4.6.6
✓ I’m done. DELETED APP years ago it was useful.This app is an advertising app now. TV have commercials. This app has advertising at bottom of screen on steady no relief. I’m deleting it and I will come back in a year and see if ir changed. I’ll use my the paperback version one again..Version: 5.7.1
✓ CommentsAwesome application, especially the voice based search..Version: 1.1
✓ Purchase subscription twice but adds still appearI purchased a subscription twice but adds still appear..Version: 4.6
🙂 Merriam-Webster Dictionary Positive Reviews
Merriam-Webster Dictionary works most of the time. If it is not working for you, we recommend you excersise some patience and retry later or contact Merriam-Webster Dictionary.
⛔ Merriam-Webster Dictionary Problems
