Thomas Mann and Lion Feuchtwanger used it, as did Paul Celan and Hermann Kasack: Dornseiff. Peter Hacks wrote, "When two authors got together, they had two rooms, two desks and two copies of Dornseiff". When he first presented his great dictionary in 1933, Franz Dornseiff (1888-1960) wanted to document the "wealth of German expression". Poets often used this treasure chest of the German language, as have many others.

With its unique structural principle, Dornseiff is an indispensible reference work for any writer who is interested in looking for words with related meanings (synonyms) in order to formulate his or her text in a more precise and diversified manner. In addition to its use as a stylistic aid, Dornseiff is a useful tool for linguists interested in conducting differentiated lexical analyses. Dornseiff presents the entire German lexicon according to subject areas, that is, the entries are not ordered alphabetically. As a result, each entry contains an abundance of words from all parts of speech belonging to one subject area or concept. Therefore, each entry provides information, documentation and inspiration.

The comprehensive new edition of this standard work is distinguished by the following features

• expansion to include important new subject areas (media, informatics, stock market, astronautics, sports and leisure etc.),
• basic revision and updating of the lexicon with the aid of the lexical corpus of the "German Lexicon" project at the University of Leipzig,
• improved structure of articles,
• a detailled lexicographic introduction by Herbert Ernst Wiegand,
• the addition of a powerful CD-ROM for fast, specific inquiries,
• a completely new, user-friendly layout.

The 8th edition of Dornseiff is the consistent continuation of this reknown lexicon into present-day German and is also the first electronically-available version.