The excerpt claims that Johnson's work is significant because he changed the format of dictionaries. searched literature and found more words. applied rules to make language less chaotic. selected only the most difficult words to define.

The excerpt claims that Johnson’s work is significant because he searched literature and found more words.

The excerpt says how at the time there weren't enough dictionaries, or rather there weren't enough words in those dictionaries. This is why Johnson took it upon himself to scroll through countless books in search of new words, which he later added into his dictionary, published in 1755.