What makes a good C-E dictionary?

[dinah]

I am doing some research on what features make a good C-E dictionary for English-native learners of Chinese.

Would be very grateful for your thoughts。

Eg, use of pinyin, example sentences (number and what kind), labelling (part of speech, measure words), what kind of background information is useful, idioms and how they are defined, use of classical Chinese, fonts, definitions (new trend is to only have one, older dictionaries have several), UK English and US English, and so on.

Consider both electronic versions and paper copies.

谢谢大家！

[XiaoXi]

1. Definition explained in Chinese or where possible a picture of the word concerned e.g if the word is an object like an apple then just have a picture of it. 2. as many example sentences using the word as possible. If a picture is used to define the word then no need for any example sentences. If a user doesn't understand the definition in Chinese then they can select any word within the Chinese definition and that word will be defined in English in a popup. But ultimately my meaning is that the best C-E dictionary is in fact for all intents and purposes a Chinese-Chinese dictionary or indeed Chinese-Visual definitions.

Oh and forget paper its a thing of the past.

[yellowpower]

in general, great if the C - E dictionary:

1) give words that are similiar or opposite to the word

2) word usage - when these words cannot be used in certain contexts

3) any slang associated meanings

4) easily confused words with similiar meanings

5) if the word is used primarily in China/Taiwan/other chinese speaking countries..and highlightling any regional differences

[jiacheng]

I think that different dictionaries can have different aims. Some dictionaries might aim to give you a simple and concise definition, give an example sentence in some cases where the meaning is not obvious. I think this tends to be the aim of the ABC C-E Dictionary. Because of this, I tend to use it as the source of definitions when I am reviewing flashcards since speed is an important factor when reviewing. When looking up words for the first time, may be more advantageous to give a large amount of information, multiple examples, commonly used collocations and other info.

While pictures might be effective in exploiting a person's visual memory and likely very effective for young learners, I don't think it's a good idea to eliminate any English explanation for all dictionaries. To do so seems like a trendy pseudoscience kind of approach to language learning. By having only pictures, your dictionary is no longer searchable for text strings. On the other hand, pictures would be super handy if you're looking up some fruit, plant or vegetable that you've never seen before and the English translation is some scientific word that only has meaning to a handful of botanists.

I'm in total agreement that paper is pretty much irrelevant in this day and age. Oxford C-E dictionary, while it is a highly useful dictionary, is largely off my radar these days since it's no longer included in Pleco. I'm hoping it will come back at some point, but I'm not getting my hopes too high.

So in summary, here are the main properties I look for in dictionary entries in various contexts:

Flashcards/fast lookup: simple, concise, as unambiguous as possible without making the entry overly wordy.

Looking up for the first time or referencing when reading: various meanings, related words, alternate/regional pronunciations, common collocations, multiple example sentences that point out the subtleties of the usage of that entry if any. In this context, more info is generally better.

[Erbse]

I'm using 学生实用汉英大词典. Might not be the best, but does its job and it's cheap.

ISBN 9787500671916

[Hofmann]

Characters

• Pronunciation in 反切, and a Middle Chinese romanization system, and various modern Chinese romanization systems, accounting for the difference between 普通話 and 國語
  
• Show the 部首 in 康熙字典, the components that compose the character, and its etymology.
  
• Modern and classical definitions listed
  
• ...with popularity in modern and classical language indicated
  
• ...with citations, dates, and example usages
  
• ...with special notes such as "亦作..." or "通..."
  
• in a 楷書 typeface that shows the orthodox form (正字) and the most common written form(s) in exemplary pieces of handwriting if it is different (e.g. show 明 and 眀), with citations.
  
• Common 行書 (for casual writing), 草書 (for reference), and 小篆 (for stamp makers) forms, with citations.
  
• Quickly searchable using any of the above properties
  

Words

• Pronunciation in 反切, and a Middle Chinese romanization system, and various modern Chinese romanization systems, accounting for the difference between 普通話 and 國語
  
• Modern and classical definitions listed
  
• ...with popularity in modern and classical language indicated
  
• ...with citations, dates, and example usages
  
• Quickly searchable using any of the above properties
  

And it cannot be on paper only.

[roddy]

Hofmann, Hofmann, Hofmann . . .

[Guest realmayo]

... and that's the absolute bare minimum.