Benjamin Martin (1704-1782) was an English lexicographer. A legacy enabled him to buy books and instruments, and he became a lecturer and instrument maker. He was an early champion for the Newtonian system. In 1737, he published the Biblioteca Technolgia. In 1740 he began manufacturing Hadley's quadrant (a predecessor to the sextant) and optical instruments. His business prospered, and he also became known as a spectacle maker. In 1749, he published the Lingua Britannica Reformata which contained an Universal Dictionary. His work was an improvement on earlier dictionaries in that it had a simpler system of spelling and a clearer guide to pronunciation. In 1781, he went bankrupt. He attempted suicide, and while it was not immediately successful, the wound (nature unknown) was grievous enough and he failed to recover, and died the following year at the age of 77 or 78.