a
reference to any of the various dictionaries originally written by
American author and educator,
Noah Webster (1758-1843). Along with his dictionaries, Webster authored books on spelling and
grammar. He is best known for his 1828 publication of the two-volume
dictionary, An
American Dictionary of the
English Language. Webster's dictionaries were the first to distinguish between
American and British usage, and have frequently been revised to remain
contemporary. Upon his
death, the
rights to "Webster's" were sold to the G. and C. Merriam
Co. in Springfield, Massachusetts.