# English Dictionary: Definitions & Examples (Bulk) (`smilemask/english-dictionary-lookup`) Actor

Look up definitions for any list of English words in bulk: part of speech, one or more plain-text definitions per sense, and example sentences where Wiktionary has them. Uses the free, official Wiktionary REST API (Wikimedia) - no API key needed.

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

## Pricing

from $1.20 / 1,000 results

This Actor is paid per event. You are not charged for the Apify platform usage, but only a fixed price for specific events.

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

## 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

## English Dictionary: Definitions & Examples (Bulk)

Look up definitions for any list of English words in bulk: part of speech, one or more plain-text definitions per sense, and example sentences where Wiktionary has them. Uses the free, official Wiktionary REST API (Wikimedia) - no API key needed.

### What does English Dictionary do?

Bulk English word lookups: part of speech, plain-text definitions and example sentences via Wiktionary.

### What can you use it for?

- Check spelling and meaning while building a vocabulary list or glossary.
- Enrich a word list with part of speech and a definition for an app or dataset.
- Look up unfamiliar words found while processing text or transcripts.
- Build flashcard or study-app content in bulk.

### Why use this Actor?

- **Fast and cheap:** lightweight HTTP-based Actor with no browser, so runs finish in seconds and cost very little.
- **No API keys or accounts needed** for the data source (see notes below).
- **Clean, structured JSON** that you can export as CSV, Excel, JSON or XML, or pull through the Apify API and integrations.
- **Scheduling, webhooks and integrations:** run it daily and send results to Google Sheets, Slack, Zapier, Make, n8n or your own API.

### Input

Configure the run in the **Input** tab (all fields have sensible defaults).

| Field | Type | Required | Default | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| `words` | array of strings | yes | - | English words to look up. |
| `maxDefinitionsPerWord` | integer | no | `5` | Safety limit on how many definitions are kept for each part of speech. |
| `maxExamplesPerDefinition` | integer | no | `2` | Safety limit on how many example sentences are kept per definition. |

#### Example input

```json
{
  "words": [
    "ubiquitous",
    "serendipity",
    "run"
  ]
}
```

### Output

Results are stored in the default dataset. Download them from the **Output** tab or via the API.

#### Example result

```json
{
  "word": "ubiquitous",
  "found": true,
  "partOfSpeech": [
    "Adjective"
  ],
  "definitionCount": 3,
  "firstDefinition": "Being everywhere at once: omnipresent.",
  "definitions": [
    {
      "partOfSpeech": "Adjective",
      "definition": "Being everywhere at once: omnipresent.",
      "examples": [
        "In Christianity, Hinduism, and Judaism, God is ubiquitous."
      ]
    },
    {
      "partOfSpeech": "Adjective",
      "definition": "Appearing to be everywhere at once; being or seeming to be in more than one location at the same time.",
      "examples": []
    },
    {
      "partOfSpeech": "Adjective",
      "definition": "Widespread; very prevalent.",
      "examples": []
    }
  ],
  "sourceUrl": "https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/ubiquitous#English",
  "fetchedAt": "2026-09-23T02:27:21.939Z"
}
```

#### Output fields

| Field | Type | Example |
|---|---|---|
| `word` | string | "ubiquitous" |
| `found` | boolean | true |
| `partOfSpeech` | array | \["Adjective"] |
| `definitionCount` | number | 3 |
| `firstDefinition` | string | "Being everywhere at once: omnipresent." |
| `definitions` | array | \[{"partOfSpeech":"Adjective","definition":"Being everywhe... |
| `sourceUrl` | string | "https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/ubiquitous#English" |
| `fetchedAt` | string | "2026-09-23T02:27:21.939Z" |

### How much does it cost?

The Actor is billed by Apify according to the pricing shown on the **Pricing** tab of this page. Runs are small and fast, and the Apify Free plan includes monthly platform credits so you can try it at no cost. You can set a maximum cost per run, and the Actor stops cleanly when that limit is reached.

### Notes and limitations

- Uses the free, official Wiktionary REST API (Wikimedia) - the same reliable infrastructure as Wikipedia.
- Only English-language entries are returned (a word that is also, say, a French word will show only its English sense). Definitions come as plain text with HTML markup stripped.
- Not every word has example sentences; `firstDefinition` is always the clearest single-line summary.

### Tips

- Start with a small test run, then scale up the input.
- Use **Schedules** to automate recurring runs and **Webhooks** or **Integrations** to deliver the data where you need it.
- Call the Actor from your code with the Apify API or the official JavaScript and Python clients.

### FAQ

**Does it work for phrases or slang?**

Only if the phrase has its own Wiktionary entry. Very new slang or multi-word phrases may return found: false.

**Why do some words have several partOfSpeech entries?**

Many English words serve more than one grammatical role (e.g. "run" as both a verb and a noun) - each is listed separately.

### Feedback

Found a bug or need an extra field? Open an issue from the **Issues** tab of this Actor and it will be looked at quickly.

### More tools from the same author

- [Wikipedia Page Extractor: Text, Categories & Pageviews](https://apify.com/SmileMask/wikipedia-page-extractor) - Extract Wikipedia articles in any language: summary, full text, categories, images, Wikidata ID, pageviews.
- [arXiv Paper Search: Abstracts, Authors, Categories & PDFs](https://apify.com/SmileMask/arxiv-paper-search) - Search arXiv preprints and export titles, abstracts, authors, categories, DOIs and PDF links.

# Changelog

This Actor's version history is a separate document: https://apify.com/smilemask/english-dictionary-lookup/changelog.md

# Actor input Schema

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

English words to look up.

## `maxDefinitionsPerWord` (type: `integer`):

Safety limit on how many definitions are kept for each part of speech.

## `maxExamplesPerDefinition` (type: `integer`):

Safety limit on how many example sentences are kept per definition.

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "words": [
    "ubiquitous",
    "serendipity",
    "run"
  ],
  "maxDefinitionsPerWord": 5,
  "maxExamplesPerDefinition": 2
}
```

# Actor output Schema

## `results` (type: `string`):

No description

# 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": [
        "ubiquitous",
        "serendipity",
        "run"
    ]
};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("smilemask/english-dictionary-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": [
        "ubiquitous",
        "serendipity",
        "run",
    ] }

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("smilemask/english-dictionary-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": [
    "ubiquitous",
    "serendipity",
    "run"
  ]
}' |
apify call smilemask/english-dictionary-lookup --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,smilemask/english-dictionary-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/sV7sNd4bxN78CzNdU/builds/SipiFXiIcx6RHOaK9/openapi.json