In 1746, a group of publishers approached Johnson with an idea about creating an authoritative dictionary of the English language.
A contract with William Strahan and associates, worth 1,500 guineas, was signed on the morning of 18 June 1746.
Johnson claimed that he could finish the project in three years.
In comparison, the Académie Française had 40 scholars spending 40 years to complete their dictionary, which prompted Johnson to claim, "This is the proportion.
Let me see; forty times forty is sixteen hundred.
As three to sixteen hundred, so is the proportion of an Englishman to a Frenchman."
Although he did not succeed in completing the work in three years, he did manage to finish it in eight.
Some criticised the dictionary, including Thomas Babington Macaulay, who described Johnson as "a wretched etymologist," but according to Bate, the Dictionary "easily ranks as one of the greatest single achievements of scholarship, and probably the greatest ever performed by one individual who laboured under anything like the disadvantages in a comparable length of time."

Johnson's dictionary was not the first, nor was it unique.
It was, however, the most commonly used and imitated for the 150 years between its first publication and the completion of the Oxford English Dictionary in 1928.
Other dictionaries, such as Nathan Bailey's Dictionarium Britannicum, included more words, and in the 150 years preceding Johnson's dictionary about twenty other general-purpose monolingual "English" dictionaries had been produced.
However, there was open dissatisfaction with the dictionaries of the period.
In 1741, David Hume claimed: "The Elegance and Propriety of Stile have been very much neglected among us.
We have no Dictionary of our Language, and scarce a tolerable Grammar."
Johnson's Dictionary offers insights into the 18th century and "a faithful record of the language people used".
It is more than a reference book; it is a work of literature.

For a decade, Johnson's constant work on the Dictionary disrupted his and Tetty's living conditions.
He had to employ a number of assistants for the copying and mechanical work, which filled the house with incessant noise and clutter.
He was always busy, and kept hundreds of books around him.
John Hawkins described the scene: "The books he used for this purpose were what he had in his own collection, a copious but a miserably ragged one, and all such as he could borrow; which latter, if ever they came back to those that lent them, were so defaced as to be scarce worth owning."
Johnson was also distracted by Tetty's poor health as she began to show signs of a terminal illness.
To accommodate both his wife and his work, he moved to 17 Gough Square near his printer, William Strahan.

In preparation, Johnson wrote a Plan for the Dictionary.
Philip Stanhope, 4th Earl of Chesterfield, was the patron of the Plan, to Johnson's displeasure.
Seven years after first meeting Johnson to go over the work, Chesterfield wrote two anonymous essays in The World recommending the Dictionary.
He complained that the English language lacked structure and argued in support of the dictionary.
Johnson did not like the tone of the essays, and he felt that Chesterfield had not fulfilled his obligations as the work's patron.
In a letter to Chesterfield, Johnson expressed this view and harshly criticised Chesterfield, saying "Is not a patron, my lord, one who looks with unconcern on a man struggling for life in the water, and when he has reached ground, encumbers him with help?
The notice which you have been pleased to take of my labours, had it been early, had been kind: but it has been delayed till I am indifferent and cannot enjoy it; till I am solitary and cannot impart it; till I am known and do not want it."
Chesterfield, impressed by the language, kept the letter displayed on a table for anyone to read.

The Dictionary was finally published in April 1755, with the title page acknowledging that the University of Oxford had awarded Johnson a Master of Arts degree in anticipation of the work.
The dictionary as published was
In 1746, a group of publishers approached Johnson with an idea about creating an authoritative dictionary of the English language. A contract with William Strahan and associates, worth 1,500 guineas, was signed on the morning of 18 June 1746. Johnson claimed that he could finish the project in three years. In comparison, the Académie Française had 40 scholars spending 40 years to complete their dictionary, which prompted Johnson to claim, "This is the proportion. Let me see; forty times forty is sixteen hundred. As three to sixteen hundred, so is the proportion of an Englishman to a Frenchman." Although he did not succeed in completing the work in three years, he did manage to finish it in eight. Some criticised the dictionary, including Thomas Babington Macaulay, who described Johnson as "a wretched etymologist," but according to Bate, the Dictionary "easily ranks as one of the greatest single achievements of scholarship, and probably the greatest ever performed by one individual who laboured under anything like the disadvantages in a comparable length of time."
Johnson's dictionary was not the first, nor was it unique. It was, however, the most commonly used and imitated for the 150 years between its first publication and the completion of the Oxford English Dictionary in 1928. Other dictionaries, such as Nathan Bailey's Dictionarium Britannicum, included more words, and in the 150 years preceding Johnson's dictionary about twenty other general-purpose monolingual "English" dictionaries had been produced. However, there was open dissatisfaction with the dictionaries of the period. In 1741, David Hume claimed: "The Elegance and Propriety of Stile have been very much neglected among us. We have no Dictionary of our Language, and scarce a tolerable Grammar." Johnson's Dictionary offers insights into the 18th century and "a faithful record of the language people used". It is more than a reference book; it is a work of literature.
For a decade, Johnson's constant work on the Dictionary disrupted his and Tetty's living conditions. He had to employ a number of assistants for the copying and mechanical work, which filled the house with incessant noise and clutter. He was always busy, and kept hundreds of books around him. John Hawkins described the scene: "The books he used for this purpose were what he had in his own collection, a copious but a miserably ragged one, and all such as he could borrow; which latter, if ever they came back to those that lent them, were so defaced as to be scarce worth owning." Johnson was also distracted by Tetty's poor health as she began to show signs of a terminal illness. To accommodate both his wife and his work, he moved to 17 Gough Square near his printer, William Strahan.
In preparation, Johnson wrote a Plan for the Dictionary. Philip Stanhope, 4th Earl of Chesterfield, was the patron of the Plan, to Johnson's displeasure. Seven years after first meeting Johnson to go over the work, Chesterfield wrote two anonymous essays in The World recommending the Dictionary. He complained that the English language lacked structure and argued in support of the dictionary. Johnson did not like the tone of the essays, and he felt that Chesterfield had not fulfilled his obligations as the work's patron. In a letter to Chesterfield, Johnson expressed this view and harshly criticised Chesterfield, saying "Is not a patron, my lord, one who looks with unconcern on a man struggling for life in the water, and when he has reached ground, encumbers him with help? The notice which you have been pleased to take of my labours, had it been early, had been kind: but it has been delayed till I am indifferent and cannot enjoy it; till I am solitary and cannot impart it; till I am known and do not want it." Chesterfield, impressed by the language, kept the letter displayed on a table for anyone to read.
The Dictionary was finally published in April 1755, with the title page acknowledging that the University of Oxford had awarded Johnson a Master of Arts degree in anticipation of the work. The dictionary as published was 
Samuel Johnson