Dictionaries · head-to-head
Chinese Character Web vs Merriam-Webster
The Chinese Character Web API (CCDB) is a free, read-only JSON API built on the Unicode Consortium's Unihan Database, covering Mandarin and Cantonese readings, Japanese on'yomi/kun'yomi, radicals, stroke counts, definitions, and simplified/traditional variant mappings for CJK Unified Ideographs, filterable by character-set encodings like GB2312, Big5, and Shift JIS. A live GET against /version returned a real 200 JSON body and Access-Control-Allow-Origin: * on the same Apache-served host.
Merriam-Webster's Dictionary API returns JSON definitions, pronunciations, and audio from the publisher's own Collegiate Dictionary and Thesaurus, plus specialized editions covering medical, learner's, Spanish-English, and grade-banded school dictionaries, each requiring a separate free API key. Keys are issued under a strict non-commercial license capped at 1,000 queries/day/key; using the service in a commercial product requires a separately negotiated agreement with Merriam-Webster.
| Chinese Character Web | Merriam-Webster | |
|---|---|---|
| Authentication | None | API Key |
| Pricing | free | free |
| Formats | JSON | JSON |
| CORS | yes | yes |
| HTTPS | No | Yes |
Chinese Character Web needs no API key, while Merriam-Webster requires API Key — pick Chinese Character Web to start without signup.