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The importance of a good dictionary | ||
Tags: Dictionaries | ||
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 Language Learning Forum : Learning Techniques, Methods & Strategies |  | |
| William Camden Hexaglot Senior Member United Kingdom Joined 6054 days ago 1936 posts - 2333 votes  Speaks: English*, German, Spanish, Russian, Turkish, French | Message 9 of 11 14 August 2010 at 3:59pm | IP Logged |
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I often carry around pocket ones, Langenscheidt, Collins or Oxford. The quality of them varies but they are easily portable and I can use them for a bit of language study or review.
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| aru-aru Triglot Senior Member Latvia Joined 6239 days ago 244 posts - 331 votes Speaks: Latvian*, English, Russian | Message 10 of 11 14 August 2010 at 4:43pm | IP Logged |
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I find Chinese dictionary Wenlin offers to be even better than most paper dictionaries that I have. I mean vocabulary covered is huge, it includes very specific culture-related stuff and such. Also, searching for a Chinese character is much faster when you can draw it, rather than search for it using the "traditional" methods. If we talk texts you can find online, well, nothing beats the pop-up dictionary approach.*
My big fat Chinese-Russian dictionary beats Wenlin in military terms, I assume, but that's about it. The Oxford dictionary is no good. Sinolingua publishes good dictionaries, I prefer the bilingual ones explaining things both in Chinese and English. Much better than simple Chinese-English ones. They also offer very specific dictionaries - the idiom dictionary, synonym dictionary, function word dictionary and what not. At one point of your studies, that's the stuff you look for and can't find in a "normal" dictionary. Chinese synonyms and differences in meaning and usage is a killer. If looking for a good Chinese dictionary, Sinolingua is your publisher. That said, I hate paper dictionaries, because they slow me down. If I try to read, and have to look up the words all the time, I'm quitting before the page is finished. So, for me that is not an option. But yes, having a good dictionary for emergencies is necessary. For when online stuff can give you no answer. Though, that's usually when the paper dictionary can't either. Tip: try Google image search, if at total loss. Has saved me countless times. If unsure how to use the word, see what sentences Google spits out. Get the biggest and fattest dictionary you can get your hands on and let it dust on the shelf untill you need it. *Anyone can recommend a good Spanish-English pop-up dictionary? Edited by aru-aru on 14 August 2010 at 4:47pm 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| tpark Tetraglot Pro Member Canada Joined 6828 days ago 118 posts - 127 votes Speaks: English*, German, Dutch, French Personal Language Map | Message 11 of 11 17 August 2010 at 5:41am | IP Logged |
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I use the dictionaries that I can download to my iPhone - Larousse and the van Dale are available for purchase in this manner. You don't need an internet connection to use these (a good thing, especially if you're roaming in Europe) and of course the iPhone is portable and there's no need to drag heavy books around, especially if you're in the mode of purchasing things to take home. Lookup is fast and easy. I try to use the unilingual versions first, then go to translations if I still can't figure it out.
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