Use Cortana to define words for you in Windows 10

Microsoft’s Cortana has many uses including sending emails or checking the weather. One of the best uses though is a simple look-up feature for words and their definitions. Combined with the Hey Cortana voice recognition using Cortana to tell you quickly what a word means is a great hands-free tip.

There are multiple ways to get Cortana to define a word. If you have Hey Cortana enabled you can simply blurt out your request:

“Hey Cortana what is the meaning/definition of inchoate?”

“Hey Cortana define ubiquitously“

You can, of course, also just type in your request e.g “define beatitude” although this admittedly takes some of the speed (and fun) out of using the personal digital assistant.

For many words, Cortana displays the definition within a card, and OxfordDictionaries or EncartaDictionaries powers it. Sometimes, if Cortana misunderstands you or does not have the definition, the assistant opens up a web page after performing a web search for it.

There is not much else to say about the feature outside of it being helpful, especially if you are writing something.

Ask Cortana

If you are using the Microsoft Edge browser and are reading an article with a word you do not know, Cortana has you covered here too. Simply highlight the word using your mouse (or tap if on a touch screen) and right-click to bring up a menu. Choose Ask Cortana and the assistant should grab the definition for you in a slide-out window from the right side.

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