Legal
Cookie policy
What cookies we use, why we use them, and how you can turn them off.
What cookies are
Last updated: May 14, 2026
Cookies are small text files that a website saves to your browser when you visit. They let the site remember things like whether you are signed in, what theme you prefer, and which pages you have already seen. Some cookies are set by us, and some are set by third parties whose services we use.
Categories of cookies we use
- Strictly necessary. Required for the site to work. Sign-in sessions, CSRF protection, and basic security all rely on these. You cannot opt out of strictly necessary cookies and still use the signed-in parts of the site.
- Preferences. Remember your choices, like light or dark theme and which dictionary view you last used. These improve your experience but the site still works without them.
- Analytics. Help us understand which terms and pages get used. We see aggregate usage patterns, not individual identities.
- Advertising. Used by Google AdSense to serve ads and measure their performance. AdSense may also use cookies for frequency capping, fraud prevention, and (with your consent in regions that require it) personalization.
Specific cookies and services
- Clerk (authentication). Session and CSRF cookies for signed-in users. Without these you cannot log in or save favourites.
- Supabase (database and auth helpers). Short-lived tokens for authenticated API requests.
- Vercel Analytics. Privacy-friendly, aggregate page view counts. Does not track individual users across sites.
- Google AdSense. Cookies used to serve ads, prevent fraud, and (where permitted) personalize ad content. Google’s use of advertising cookies is governed by Google’s advertising policies.
- Local storage (not technically a cookie). We use browser local storage to remember your theme choice and recently viewed terms. This data stays on your device and is never sent to our servers.
How to manage cookies
You can control cookies in a few ways:
- Browser settings. Every modern browser lets you block or delete cookies. Blocking strictly-necessary cookies will break sign-in.
- Google Ad Settings. Manage advertising preferences at adssettings.google.com.
- YourAdChoices. US users can opt out of personalized ads at aboutads.info/choices.
- EDAA (EU). EU users can opt out at youronlinechoices.com.
Changes to this policy
We update this policy when the cookies we use change. The “Last updated” date at the top reflects the most recent revision.