Google Dictionary for Windows

Cool extensions for Google Chrome are piling up faster than you can say "agglomeration," but not faster than you can define it, thanks to--you guessed it-- yet another really cool Google Chrome extension, Google Dictionary. Short version: double-click any word in Chrome, and Google Dictionary will display the word's dictionary definition in a pop-up. Not just English words, either, but also Chinese, Czech, German, Russian, Korean, and words in other languages. You can also highlight a word and click Dictionary's address bar icon to display a more extensive and detailed definition that includes Web entries such as Wikipedia.

Like Chrome itself, Google Dictionary is free; like other Chrome extensions, it's easy to install and configure. Aside from language options, we could opt to have Google Dictionary display definitions when we prompted it by double-clicking or by pressing Ctrl and double-clicking, or to not display definitions in the main view. We could also choose whether to display the program's icon in the address bar. By default, this icon appears on any page in which Google Dictionary is active; double-clicking it gives quick access to the options page as well as the extensions management page. It works exactly as advertised, too; we placed our cursor over a word and double-clicked, and the word's definition popped right up. Next we highlighted a word and clicked the Google Dictionary icon, and a much longer definition appeared. Again, very cool. The longer definitions displayed by the address bar option include useful examples, etymologies, pronunciation variations, and other extras. The address bar icon is also great for defining words in hyperlinks without opening the link.

Google Chrome has more than proven itself a worthy contender in the browser wars, and lately it's been some better-known names that have been playing catch-up (not easy to do, given Chrome's speed). Google Dictionary is the best solution of its kind we've seen, and it boosts Chrome's standing even more. It's one Chrome extension that everyone should have.