(Part 2) Best dictionaries according to redditors
We found 424 Reddit comments discussing the best dictionaries. We ranked the 204 resulting products by number of redditors who mentioned them. Here are the products ranked 21-40. You can also go back to the previous section.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Italian-English-Bilingual-Dictionary-Dictionaries/dp/1465436324
This is the Amazon UK, but you can see the title. I once ordered it through my library.
I am Filipino-American born and raised in the US. The only difference is when I first visited Japan, I had some (pathetic) Japanese language capability and I spent 3.5 weeks there with a 7 day JR pass.
> I'm 24 years old, from the US, and I only speak English as I am a Korean American.
Here's the funny thing. When you step outside of the US, you'll just say you're American. If you say otherwise they may try to start using different languages on you or asking you questions you can't answer which is pointless so you end up clarifying you're American anyway.
> Anyone know how racist and xenophobic they will typically be towards Asian Americans like me?
There isn't much xenophobia if you don't understand Japanese and you claim you're there for travel as an American. The reaction is more along the lines of, "oh, nevermind" if they were seeking information or "oh that's nice" because it is understood that you're not going to be there after a few days.
For Asia I've been to Taiwan, South Korea, and Japan. Of the 3 I would say South Korea has the most immediate xenophobia and racism. In Japan the odds are generally in your favor for getting help even if you can't speak the language. The trick in Japan is to ask anyone that is working like a train station attendant, someone working at a store/restaurant etc. If those people aren't available, then ask someone that is standing around waiting for a friend or someone to show up.
What will be different compared to say a white American's experience is people may assume you are Japanese if you look anything like a Japanese person. If you obviously look Korean, then there might be some other differences. If people assume you're Japanese, they tend to treat you like they would a Japanese person but it probably won't matter because you won't understand what they say to you anyway.
Basically I wouldn't worry about xenophobia and racism if you don't speak the language and you're there for a short period of time. Japanese people's true thoughts won't come out until later in your relationship anyway.
> I'm also a little worried that I don't know any Japanese
You will want to pick up a Japanese phrase book. Here's a few:
http://www.amazon.com/Lonely-Planet-Japanese-Phrasebook/dp/1742201865/
http://www.amazon.com/Berlitz-Japanese-Phrase-Dictionary-English/dp/9812681574/
The most useful phrase you will use: "sumimasen".
If you want to try a restaurant that doesn't have a menu with pictures, your best bet is to go with "osusume" which is asking for the recommended dish. However, some restaurants don't really have this concept. For example there is not really an "osusume" if you show up to a purely kushikatsu/kushiage restaurant. Also some kushikatsu/kushiage places they'll just keep serving you until you tell them to stop.
If you're having trouble communicating but the person is obviously trying to help you, try writing it down or showing them how it is written on paper. Japanese English writing/reading capability tends to be better than their speaking abilities. Also you may be pronouncing Japanese words incorrectly.
> Any good guides?
I have yet to come across one. This is generally true of any travel. The locals will always know something the guidebooks know nothing about. Things also change really quickly especially in Tokyo.
For example the guidebooks may not mention anything about "you-shoku" which is western style Japanese food. Despite the name, it is actually different from what I've had in Europe and America. They probably also won't mention that super trendy Udon place in Roppongi. Or Donquixote stores. Or Uniqlo stores and the fact that hemming is a free service.
On my first trips before I gathered a lot of Japanese friends, my strategy was simply to ask the hostel/hotel receptionist for recommendations. They usually have something to suggest. Hostel (not hotel) receptionists usually have more creative ideas as they tend to be younger and have done some sort of travel themselves. Hotel receptionists on the other hand are often a little more rigid. This isn't because that's how they normally are but rather just the formalities of Japanese style formal language (keigo).
Tokyo is also 3 dimensional. By that I mean the best places are often hidden on the upper floors of a building or the basement levels and they won't have a huge sign (there's too many signs anyway). The train stations can also be pretty confusing; not all train exits/entrances are equal.
> I'd also like to possibly see the hot springs
They're called onsen and scattered everywhere in Japan. For a better experience you may have to travel outside of Tokyo like to Hakone. I'm no expert on this but I will say they usually have a "cold" pool where the water is...cold. I couldn't manage to submerse myself in it.
> gardens
I don't know of any good gardens in Tokyo, but there is the Imperial Palace East Garden.
> anime merchandise
Akihabara.
> I also really want to see the universities in Tokyo (Univ of Tokyo, Nihon Univ, Tokyo Tech) and possibly meet the college students there.
That's nice but also very optimistic. If you know someone, it's probably great. If you don't, I think it's going to be hard to get around unless you're a naturally charismatic or an outgoing person. If you want to do something like this you're better off contacting someone in Tokyo beforehand and meeting them when you get there. I say this not because I don't think you can do it on the spot, rather you're probably underestimating the difficulties of not being able to read anything and not being able to communicate in English. If your trip is only 6 days in Tokyo, there isn't a lot of time to experiment.
Given that, here's my recommendation for what you should do with your 6 days:
Day 1: Morning: Tsukiji fish market. Afternoon: Ginza.
Since you're jetlagged anyway, Tsukiji early morning. I don't know if they still open the fish auctions to the public, but if they do you will have to take a taxi at 4:30am to make it in before the crowds. Otherwise you can take the first train in the morning. It is best in the morning as you see the weird looking carts driving around.
If you're not too tired, you can head over to Ginza which is two stops away by subway.
Day 2: Morning: Asakusa Sensō-ji. Afternoon: Ueno Ameyoko market, Ueno park if you want. Afternoon/Evening: Akihabara.
Asakusa Sensoji is a famous temple with a walkway that has many shops. The area around it is also Edo-period-ish and has a bunch of shops you wouldn't normally find in other parts of Tokyo. Food is cheap.
Ameyoko market in Ueno has a lot of cheap food products. Stuff like dried fish, fruits, etc.
Akihabara is the anime/electronics/maid cafe area.
Day 3: Morning: Shinjuku. Afternoon: Harajuku + Meiji shrine. Evening: Shibuya
These are are primarily shopping areas. Shinjuku has the Tokyo metropolitan building which has a free observatory. You can go up there can get a free high level view of Tokyo.
Harajuku bridge on Sundays sometimes has people cosplay. If not there is Takeshita street which has lots of shops primarily targeting high schoolers.
Near Harajuku is also Meiji shrine. This is a big shinto shrine but it's a bit of a walk.
Shibuya has Hachiko crossing. Lots of videos on youtube and pictures of this crossing. Shibuya also has a lot of restaurants and cafes.
Day 4: Kamakura
I would actually want to spend 2 days here as you'll need to do a lot of walking to get anywhere. A lot of historical sites/shrines/buddas/etc. Don't bother with the beach, however, it isn't worth seeing.
Day 5: Morning: Odaiba. Evening: Roppongi.
Odaiba is reclaimed land with a bunch of funny looking buildings on it. Sometimes they have real-size Gundam's there. I don't know much about it. There's a Toyota showroom there and a Fuji-TV building I think. There's also a statue of liberty over there.
Roppongi is not really my favorite place but it's worthy a visit I guess. It has a high number of foreigners, bars, clubs, and restaurants. There's also Tokyo Tower there. (But it is probably overrated now that the Sky Tree is open.)
Day 6: Whatever else you want + shopping/packing.
Night stuff:
If you're into the American club/bar scene and you must have your fix in Japan, you've got the foreigner bars/clubs in Roppongi or more Japanese clubs in Shibuya or the most famous Ageha (take the bus from Shibuya). Note: since the trains stop after midnight, the clubs/bars will be dead until ~11pm. Everyone goes from 11pm till 5am and whoever is left takes the first train in the morning.
I highly recommend you make a friend or organize meeting someone before hand because the better stuff should be done in groups:
Izakaya. Japanese Pub would be the translation. But it is organized more like a restaurant. I guess it would be similar to a Korean style bar except the food in Izakaya is usually pretty good and authentic.
Shabu Shabu. It's a hot pot with boiling water. But it is not Hong Kong style where they put flavoring in the broth. Instead you each the meat and vegetables individually first. Then with the left over broth you usually have noodles or rice mixed in with it.
Karaoke.
Food:
I'll let you look up each item.
If you want to drink "sake" the correct word is "nihonshu". If you want the better kind ask for junmai daiginjo.
If you're really into sushi, you should try to find a place that serves real wasabi made from the root. It doesn't really have the horseradish properties of powered wasabi. If you want to be ruined for life try a piece of good ootoro.
It's available and free on Amazon.it too, check here: https://www.amazon.it/Great-Book-American-Idioms-Expressions-ebook/dp/B07Z2WP8SH
Here are all the local Amazon links I could find:
amazon.com
amazon.co.uk
amazon.ca
amazon.com.au
amazon.in
amazon.com.mx
amazon.de
amazon.it
amazon.es
amazon.com.br
amazon.nl
amazon.co.jp
amazon.fr
Beep bloop. I'm a bot to convert Amazon ebook links to local Amazon sites.
I currently look here: amazon.com, amazon.co.uk, amazon.ca, amazon.com.au, amazon.in, amazon.com.mx, amazon.de, amazon.it, amazon.es, amazon.com.br, amazon.nl, amazon.co.jp, amazon.fr, if you would like your local version of Amazon adding please contact my creator.
This is hard to answer. Most scholars would say that you need to have training in how to learn the Talmud before you can competently study it by yourself.
Having said that, get a copy of Frank's Practical Talmud Dictionary and Jastrow's dictionary. Memorize nearly all of the terms in the Practical Talmud Dictionary — not just the translation, but the meaning and implications of that meaning on the flow of the Talmud's argument.
When learning Talmud, start with focusing on the structure or flow of the argument. The Ramchal talks about 7 basic agenda's that you will find in the Talmud:
1 - Statement
2 - Question
3 - Response
4 - Problem
5 - Resolution
6 - Proof
7 - Refutation
Break the text into parts and find which of the seven each part is.
For more information, see the beginning of my book on the topic.
You can also join my chaburah (learning group) online here.
If you want more information, you can PM me for my contact info.
Fuck yeah, now you too can be a genius!
Politeness rules in all countries, but possibly nowhere is it more important than Japan, so all the usual "first phrases" are your go-to firsts here as well: please, thank you, excuse me, hello, good morning, good evening, etc. Then there's survival phrases like "where is the toilet/train station/police box/etc."
You should definitely get a phrasebook. I used the Berlitz Japanese phrase book & dictionary during my two 2-week trips and it was invaluable. Here are the essentials it lists in the inside front cover:
Edit: standardized my romaji. "ou" is a "o" sound lasting two syllables: "sayohohnara." Repeated characters are also such two-syllable sounds. "ii" is "eeee." consonants doubled make a halting stop: yukkuri - "youk - kurē"
You can get it from Amazon or google books. Here is an amazon link: https://www.amazon.com/English-Maay-Dictionary-Mohamed-Haji-Mukhtar/dp/1905068891
New on this whole imgur thing. http://imgur.com/gallery/cYCPU
Also see http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/1465436332/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?qid=1452147672&sr=8-1&pi=SY200_QL40&keywords=mandarin+chinese+english+bilingual+visual+dictionary&dpPl=1&dpID=51CYPVnqxPL&ref=plSrch
https://www.amazon.com/Words-Should-Sound-Smart-Calendar/dp/1440596476/ref=pd_sbs_14_t_2/159-1502601-9887805?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=08QXGSTBPC09AWJEBWCX
A collocation dictionary is similar to, but not exactly, what you're looking for. The Oxford Collocations Dictionary for Students of English is an example, and the way an entry is structured is to give different collocations for the key you've looked up.
In a similar vein, there's REDES diccionario combinatorio del español contemporáneo (REDES combinatorial dictionary for contemporary Spanish) for Spanish. In addition to collocations, it presents linguistic restrictions on what kinds of words can pair with or occur near whatever word you've looked up. It doesn't necessarily present its collocations and entries as constructions, but it does end up inadvertently giving information that could easily lend itself to construction grammar. There's a flash website here that gives examples of the kinds of entries it has. It's in Spanish, and Google can't translate Flash apps, so it might not be accessible for you, though.
Shameless plug of an awesome Vietnamese-English cultural/encyclopedic dictionary my boyfriend's father wrote!
http://www.amazon.com/Vietnamese-English-Dictionary-Andre-Nguyen-Chau/dp/1941345492/ref=asap_bc?ie=UTF8
I have read foreign novels on the Touch, the Paperwhite 1, the Paperwhite 2, and the Voyage. Of the three, I definitely like the Voyage the best, but I have to agree that the Paperwhite 2 is probably the best value, if price is a consideration.
You absolutely want the latest software, though. they made a lot of improvements in the last update that were specifically targeted at users reading foreign languages and using multiple dictionaries. My own strategy is to use the built-in mono-lingual dictionary first and then switch to the bilingual one only if that fails. That was harder to do before the latest upgrade.
I'm planning to work on German next year, and I expect to buy the PONS Advanced German -> English Dictionary. I've read through the reviews on Amazon for four dictionaries, and this one seems like the best of the bunch. I used Collins dictionaries to read Spanish, French, and Italian, and while the first two were good, the Italian one was missing lots of word forms. I saw some reviews making the same complaint about the German one, so I'll probably avoid it.
Thanks for the contest :D
All of the big Advanced Learner dictionaries will work for that: Merriam-Webster's, Collins COBUILD, Cambridge, Oxford - American and so on.
However... studying vocabulary from a dictionary is not optimal. I like vocabulary builders for that a lot more: Merriam-Websters and Oxford American are the the two I had used - plus TOEFL, CPE and IELTS vocabulary books. And Swan's Practical English Usage - that last section is a gold mine - highlighting the small differences between words and expressions and whatsnot). And I had found Oxford Collocations Dictionary very useful as well.
And do not underestimate the online resources - all of the big dictionaries are also online and you can look up examples and explanations very easy.
Barron's 501 Hebrew verbs may be helpful... It's not exactly what you are looking for, but it may help to a certain extent. https://www.amazon.com/dp/1438010400/ref=pd_lpo_sbs_dp_ss_1?pf_rd_p=b4bbef4e-170e-463d-8538-7eff3394b224&pf_rd_s=lpo-top-stripe-1&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=0812094689&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=0749VNHZV7CTDFNZNEV6&pf_rd_r=0749VNHZV7CTDFNZNEV6&pf_rd_p=b4bbef4e-170e-463d-8538-7eff3394b224
A full set is quite expensive.
Kompetenzniveau B2:
> Kann die Hauptinhalte komplexer Texte zu konkreten und abstrakten Themen verstehen; versteht im eigenen Spezialgebiet auch Fachdiskussionen. [..] Kann sich zu einem breiten Themenspektrum klar und detailliert ausdrücken [..]
Es ist vielleicht sinnvoller, ein Wörterbuch für Fremdsprachler zu kaufen, z.B. https://www.amazon.de/Langenscheidt-Gro%C3%9Fw%C3%B6rterbuch-Deutsch-Fremdsprache-Online-Anbindung/dp/3468490399/ref=sr_1_15?ie=UTF8&qid=1526623000&sr=8-15&keywords=deutsch+als+fremdsprache.
Eine reine Wortliste reicht für B2 nicht mehr, da die Begriffe immer mehr vom Kontext abhängen. Ohne Informationen zum Kontext kann man später Probleme bekommen. Ich kenne Leute, die Wörterbücher auswendig lernen und C2-Wortschatz verwenden, deren Sätze dann aber oft leider unverständlich werden, so dass sie nur schwer auf Level B2 kommen.
Außerdem brauchst du noch den Wortschatz für Fachdiskussionen zu deinem "Spezialgebiet" (z.B. aus deinem Beruf oder deiner Lebenssituation).
I lived in BA for a year just to study tango and Spanish.
If your current Spanish level is basic or non-existent, plan a multi year effort. Maybe start with r/Spanish guides.
If you know some already then these are two decent resources:
https://www.amazon.com/DICCIONARIO-DEL-HABLA-LOS-ARGENTINOS/dp/9500430282
https://www.amazon.com/Diccionario-Etimologico-del-Lunfardo-Spanish/dp/9870400035/
Besides seconding Google Image Search as /u/a_sojourner mentioned, I'm a big fan of picture dictionaries like this one and, if it exists, children's dictionaries (or otherwise simplified "learner's" dictionaries) that aren't going to give you extensive information on infrequent uses of words and "academic" definitions. (What I mean by "academic" definition is, just to use the given example of "wheel", Merriam-Webster's main dictionary says "a circular frame of hard material that may be solid, partly solid, or spoked and that is capable of turning on an axle" versus their learner's dictionary that says, much more simply, "one of the round parts underneath a car, wagon, etc., that rolls and allows something to move".)
https://www.amazon.com/English-Maay-Dictionary-Mohamed-Haji-Mukhtar/dp/1905068891
There's no Vietnamese - English dictionary dedicated to psychology only. You can try a more general Vietnamese - English dictionary like this one. Sometimes you'll just have to accept that there're words that have one in Vietnamese but cannot find its counterpart in English, and vice versa, especially illness name.
can you please share the courses and the movies/series you found useful or at least entertaining? children books, you bought them or downloaded? which ones have good language?
to share something back, I did this one, it is one of 6x 4-week courses
https://www.futurelearn.com/courses/italian-for-beginners-1/
now I started this edX course, not sure if it is good for me yet
https://courses.edx.org/courses/course-v1:WellesleyX+APIta.x+3T2017
and I tried Tandem and Hellotalk apps, but it never gave me a good partner and the one I found was not interested in me...
and I recently downloaded and then bought this book: https://www.amazon.com/Italian-English-Bilingual-Dictionary-Dictionaries/dp/1465436324/
I recommend Oscar Conde's Diccionario Etimológico del Lunfardo.
It’s related to Amharic and Hebrew, if you have any background in those it will most certainly help. I too learned Amharic and Tigrinyin in the Peace Corps. By learn... I guess... I could get by, by no means was I fluent. But that said, language was not, ever, my strong suit. If you can get ahold of a peace corps language book, do.
My friend Tedross however, was amazing. I served with him and he is now married to a wonderful Ethiopian women. He wrote a this book that has gotten some good reviews. Once you have learned the basics, you could try reaching out to Peace Corps Volunteers and they could help set you up with a community member who could mentor and teach you, and vise verses. Or heck, maybe some Amharic speakers on this sub could help you.
Either way, you should at least go to Ethiopia. It’s an amazing country. The Simian Mountains are are less known that Kilimanjaro but breath taking. Good luck on the language quest.
I have no idea what those levels mean, but here's a fun visual dictionary that is basically just a bunch of vocabulary lists. Good if you want to try to communicate in formal Arabic and decide "I want to know words about cars today" or something like that.
Spanish
https://www.amazon.com/dp/1465459316/ref=pd_lpo_sbs_dp_ss_3/139-3914457-3656352?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=lpo-top-stripe-1&pf_rd_r=S9HEV6304SXFCEN966R2&pf_rd_r=S9HEV6304SXFCEN966R2&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_p=7a8f5654-37f5-4688-a266-a74309cad748&pf_rd_p=7a8f5654-37f5-4688-a266-a74309cad748&pf_rd_i=0756649838
​
Arabic
https://www.amazon.com/Arabic-English-Bilingual-Dictionary-DK-Publishing/dp/0756649838
​
There are for many other languages
I prefer Langenscheidt as well. Here's a link to Amazon US:
https://www.amazon.com/Langenscheidt-Grosswoerterbuch-Deutsch-als-Fremdsprache/dp/3468490399
Wanting to learn ASL (I am starting to build a relationship with a local deaf & blind school for work and want to communicate with the students better) so this
A Kindle 4. When I take books from Aozora Bunko, convert them and put them on my Kindle they work just fine. As I said, even dictionaries work, so the Kindle definitely can handle the characters — even displays them correctly in input fields (can't type them ofc. but it works when they're placed there automatically for dictionary search).
Yet, for every book with Japanese content on Amazon: not available for the non paperwhite Kindle
You can always join some local classes, so look at your local synagogue and see if they have any Talmud classes for beginners (in my experience, this is extremely rare at Chabad. It's more common at other Orthodox synagogues).
However, learning Talmud is more of a skill set that requires a lot of specialized vocabulary. If you're interested in it, you can teach yourself quite a bit with enough dedication and the right books, e.g. Steinsaltz's Reference Guide, Frank's Practical Dictionary & Jastrow's Dictionary, but if it's something you seriously want to develop, it's best to go to a program which has the goal of giving you Jewish textual literacy.
I'd strongly recommend getting a copy of the book 501 Hebrew Verbs, which provides an excellent explanation of the verb conjugation system as well as lots of great examples of verb conjugations.
I also use Google Translate as well as Yahoo! Babel Fish for online translations. The Spanish tutor from whom I'm learning Spanish recommended Webster's New Spanish-English Dictionary for a dictionary. Others in the class have gotten other dictionaries as well, but have said that the one she recommended seems to be better, though I haven't purchased any others myself.
One of the other people in the class has a dictionary specifically for conjugating verbs, which is much better for that purpose, though. I made a note of the one he is using for that purpose, so I could purchase it as well, but can't find the note at the moment. I usually use SpanishDict | Spanish Conugation as an online resource for that purpose.
You mentioned that you would like something you can use for reading outside in the quad. I'd agree that reading from a laptop screen outside is unpleasant, if not impossible on sunny days. An alternative is to use a Kindle with free 3G + Wi-Fi access; it's much better for reading outside than a laptop or iPad - see iPad vs. Kindle: Which is the better e-Reader?. It would allow you to carry several dictionaries with you for outside reading as well as other digital books. E.g., there are several Spanish/English dictionaries available for the Kindle, including the following:
You can also use it to visit websites, so could use Google Translate, etc. when you are outside.
I know many people prefer the feel of a book, though. I just recently purchased a Kindle to take reading material with me on a vacation, so I didn't have to lug heavy books with me, so almost all my books are still in paper format.
I have been using this for my kindle, and it has worked fine. Sometimes it has trouble reading the conjugated forms of verbs, but I think that's just an issue with the kindle, not the dictionary.
https://www.amazon.com/Arabic-English-Bilingual-Visual-Dictionary-Dictionaries/dp/1465436294/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1482199992&sr=8-1&keywords=arabic+visual+dictionary
Books like these are great for visual learners. There are shorter simpler ones out there too.
Try Britannica --still printing
When I got a Kindle I bought the PONS German - English dictionary (link). It's $10 but it works very well.
Does anyone know of any J->E collocation dictionaries? I know the book "Common Japanese Collocations," but can't seem to find anything like a bilingual edition of the Oxford Collocations Dictionary.
[This] (http://imgur.com/7OvBTNy) is a photo of two of my babies, Jimmex and Lola. The cuddliest, hairless cats ever :)
And honestly, any gift would be appreciated, but the [Signing Made Easy] (http://www.amazon.com/dp/0399514902/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pd_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=17NON4X8QY4C4&coliid=IEQZH9SVQANNJ) book would really make my week :)
Don't forget that socks rock.
https://www.amazon.com/Spanish-English-Bilingual-Dictionary-Dictionaries/dp/1465459316/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1501457867&sr=8-1&keywords=spanish+visual+dictionary
Hello, I am in Ethiopian born and raised in the US and I have very minimal understanding of Amharic. I bought This, i'm not sure where to start learning. I assume I should memorize the alphabet before anything? I will be supplementing my learning my asking my mom to only speak to me in Amharic and by keeping an Amharic journal. Right now the journal is very difficult to keep since I don't understand the alphabet thus I have to look up every single word before writing it. Please advise me on how to begin learning and thank you.