# Free English Dictionary & Definitions Lookup (`fit_melon/free-dictionary-definitions-lookup`) Actor

Bulk English word lookup: definitions, phonetics, pronunciation audio, part of speech, synonyms and antonyms. Free, no API key. Clean JSON for word lists, NLP and language apps.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/fit_melon/free-dictionary-definitions-lookup.md
- **Developed by:** [D N](https://apify.com/fit_melon) (community)
- **Categories:** Developer tools, Other
- **Stats:** 2 total users, 1 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks
- **User rating**: No ratings yet

## Pricing

Pay per usage

This Actor is paid per platform usage. The Actor is free to use, and you only pay for the Apify platform usage, which gets cheaper the higher subscription plan you have.

Learn more: https://docs.apify.com/actors/running/actors-in-store.md#pay-per-usage

## What's an Apify Actor?

An Actor is a serverless cloud program that runs on the Apify platform. It has two run modes.
In Batch mode, an Actor accepts a well-defined JSON input, performs an action which can take anything from a few seconds to a few hours,
and optionally produces a well-defined JSON output, datasets with results, or files in key-value store.
In Standby mode, an Actor provides a web server which can be used as a website, API, or an MCP server.

Apify vocabulary and the platform model are defined once, in the agent quickstart at https://apify.com/agents.md.

## How to integrate an Actor?

If asked about integration, you help developers integrate Actors into their projects.
You adapt to their stack and deliver integrations that are safe, well-documented, and production-ready.

Do not guess an integration path. Every one of them is in the agent quickstart at https://apify.com/agents.md: the Apify MCP server, Agent Skills with the Apify CLI, the JavaScript and Python clients, the REST API, and the account-free path for an agent with no human to sign in. It also carries the rule on stating cost before the first paid run.

For examples already wired to this Actor's own input schema, see the [API](#api) section below.

Each client library has reference documentation the quickstart does not restate: [JavaScript/TypeScript](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs.md) (`npm install apify-client`) and [Python](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs.md) (`pip install apify-client`).

# README

## Free English Dictionary & Definitions Lookup

**What it does.** Bulk-lookup English words and get clean, structured JSON: definitions, part of speech, phonetic transcription, pronunciation audio, usage examples, plus merged **synonyms** and **antonyms**. Built on the free, open Dictionary API — no API key, no sign-up. Perfect for enriching word lists, building vocabulary/flashcard apps, NLP preprocessing, crosswords, or language-learning tools (dictionnaire anglais, définitions, synonymes). You only pay your Apify platform usage.

### Input

| Field | Type | Description |
|---|---|---|
| `words` | array of strings | English words to look up, one per line. |
| `includeExamples` | boolean | Keep usage example sentences (default true). |
| `flattenSynonyms` | boolean | Add top-level merged synonym/antonym lists (default true). |

### Output (example)

```json
{
  "status": "found",
  "word": "hello",
  "phonetic": "/həˈləʊ/",
  "audio": "https://api.dictionaryapi.dev/media/pronunciations/en/hello-uk.mp3",
  "partsOfSpeech": ["noun", "verb", "interjection"],
  "definitionCount": 5,
  "meanings": [
    { "partOfSpeech": "noun", "definitions": [ { "definition": "A greeting.", "example": "she said hello" } ] }
  ],
  "synonyms": ["hi", "howdy"],
  "antonyms": ["goodbye"]
}
```

Each result carries a `status`: `found`, `not_found`, or `error`. Unknown words are recorded as `not_found` — the actor never crashes.

### Use cases

- Enrich a vocabulary or word list with definitions and audio.
- Power a dictionary, flashcard, or language-learning app.
- NLP / text-analysis preprocessing (synonyms, POS tags).
- Generate crossword or word-game data.

### Limitations & fair use

Data from the community [Free Dictionary API](https://dictionaryapi.dev/). English only. Coverage varies by word; rare or very new words may return `not_found`. Polite delays are applied between requests.

### More actors by this developer

See other free, no-key data actors on the [developer profile](https://apify.com/fit_melon).

# Actor input Schema

## `words` (type: `array`):

English words to look up (one per line).

## `includeExamples` (type: `boolean`):

Keep usage example sentences in the output.

## `flattenSynonyms` (type: `boolean`):

Add top-level de-duplicated lists of all synonyms and antonyms for the word.

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "words": [
    "serendipity",
    "ephemeral",
    "hello"
  ],
  "includeExamples": true,
  "flattenSynonyms": true
}
```

# API

You can run this Actor programmatically using our API. Below are code examples in JavaScript, Python, and CLI, as well as the OpenAPI specification and MCP server setup.

## JavaScript example

```javascript
import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client';

// Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
// Replace the '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token
const client = new ApifyClient({
    token: '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>',
});

// Prepare Actor input
const input = {
    "words": [
        "serendipity",
        "ephemeral",
        "hello"
    ]
};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("fit_melon/free-dictionary-definitions-lookup").call(input);

// Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if any)
console.log('Results from dataset');
console.log(`💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/${run.defaultDatasetId}`);
const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems();
items.forEach((item) => {
    console.dir(item);
});

// 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs

```

## Python example

```python
from apify_client import ApifyClient

# Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
# Replace '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token.
client = ApifyClient("<YOUR_API_TOKEN>")

# Prepare the Actor input
run_input = { "words": [
        "serendipity",
        "ephemeral",
        "hello",
    ] }

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("fit_melon/free-dictionary-definitions-lookup").call(run_input=run_input)

# Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if there are any)
print(f"💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/{run.default_dataset_id}")
for item in client.dataset(run.default_dataset_id).iterate_items():
    print(item)

# 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs/quick-start

```

## CLI example

```bash
echo '{
  "words": [
    "serendipity",
    "ephemeral",
    "hello"
  ]
}' |
apify call fit_melon/free-dictionary-definitions-lookup --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,fit_melon/free-dictionary-definitions-lookup"
        }
    }
}
```

The hosted server signs you in with OAuth on first connect, so no API token belongs in this config. Clients without OAuth support can send an `Authorization: Bearer <APIFY_API_TOKEN>` header instead, using a token from API & Integrations in Apify Console (https://console.apify.com/settings/integrations).

## OpenAPI specification

Download the OpenAPI definition: https://api.apify.com/v2/actors/ewileH6pZfyAMComi/builds/PLEeeCyoVahxKxm8k/openapi.json