UML tool: Dictionary diagrams

Examples of UML dictionary diagrams with Modelio

A dictionary represents the terminology used in a specific domain. It is made up of terms that provide names and definitions.

A dictionary is the basis for identifying which model elements must be created in order to represent term-related notions. It is used to intelligently name model elements, document them, and measure the coverage of the model.

Terms (dictionary elements) can be represented in dedicated diagrams (dictionary diagrams), but they are more frequently shown in association with model elements in these specific models (UML class diagrams, for example), in order to represent the origin of these elements.


Modelio provides dictionary definition support as an extension to UML/BPMN. Dictionaries are often defined in spreadsheets, and Modelio provides dedicated support of dictionary spreadsheets, as well as a graphical editor for term and glossary modeling.

UML dictionary diagram

Dictionary spreadsheet editor