Looking for inspiration? Need some basic definitions or background information?
Reference resources help you gain a basic understanding of your topic and might spark ideas for your writing.
Scroll through our Encyclopedias and Dictionaries page for information or inspiration:
Try Single Search for a general topic (drugs) + Encyclopedia OR Dictionary: Note that the drop-downs on the right have been changed to 'Subject Terms' for the first word and 'Journal Title / source' for the other two search terms (Encyclopedia OR Dictionary)
Use specialized encyclopedias, biographical dictionaries, and other reference sources at the beginning of your research to obtain a broad overview of a subject, concept, ideology, or individual. These trustworthy sources provide background information including well-known facts, definitions, major dates, key contributions, and often, a list of suggested readings.
Full-text collection of authoritative reference books covering a variety of subjects and formats—dictionaries, encyclopedias, handbooks, guides, and other quick, ready-reference resources. Short videos and still images are available for many articles.
