Originally Posted by
bitt3n
Or else see Accessing the OED via a subscribing institution
Many public, university, and institutional libraries across the world subscribe to the OED Online. Speak to your librarian to find out whether your library subscribes.
Nearly all public libraries in England, Scotland, and Wales subscribe to the OED Online. This means you can access the dictionary, free, via your local library. Contact your local library to find out more.
Most libraries also offer ‘remote access’. This means that, if you are a member of your local library, you can access the OED Online for free anywhere you have internet access. Just enter your library membership number (on your library card) in the box provided under Library account. If you encounter difficulties entering the site using your library card number, please consult your librarian.
That does it for me as it has all the background you can wish for. Add in the occasional visit to www.merriam-webster.com to see what's going on over the pond and I'm sorted.
The OED is probably a bit much for an 11 yo, but I may be wrong. The free online offerings www.lexico.com (Oxford) and https://dictionary.cambridge.org are pretty good but, as others have noted, lack any etymology. I too like hard copy books, but the online sources have taken over for me as they're available just about anywhere and don't go out of date (but may not include some of the more modern usage).
As an aside, my test of a dictionary used to be to look up 'mellit', a noun that was obsolete even in my youth...but it was is some dictionaries. I can now only find it in the OED.