Abridged Greek-English Lexicon [Hardcover]

H. G. Liddell (Editor), Robert Scott (Editor)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0199102074 | ISBN-13: 978-0199102075 | Publication Date: December 31, 1935 | Edition: abridged edition

This abridgement of the world's most authoritative dictionary of ancient Greek is intended chiefly for use in schools. To this end, some of the more specialised words relating to medicine and science have been excluded, whilst words from works of particular relevance to school usage have been retained, and the number of irregular verb tenses expanded.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"The most useful Greek lexicon for the beginner, in some respects more helpful even than its two larger brothers."--Joseph B. Solodow, Stanford University

"The only currently available classical Greek lexicon that is of use to elementary students."--Sue Elwyn, Brigham Young University

"An extremely valuable book for advanced scholars as well as for beginners."--Otto Steinmayer, Yale University.

Language Notes

Text: English, Greek --This text refers to an alternate Hardcover edition.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 808 pages
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA; abridged edition edition (December 31, 1935)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0199102074
• ISBN-13: 978-0199102075
• Product Dimensions: 7.3 x 6.1 x 1.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (28 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #115,920 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #16 in Books > Education & Reference > Foreign Languages > Greek > Instruction
  • #46 in Books > Education & Reference > Dictionaries & Thesauruses > Foreign Language > Greek

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

40 of 41 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Older Eighth Edition from the American Book Company, November 23, 2004

By 

terse (and to the point) reviews (Arkansas, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Greek-English Lexicon, Ninth Edition with a Revised Supplement (Hardcover)

Just to add comment on all the discussion concerning printing. After reading the above comments, I decided to purchase an earlier edition of the Liddell & Scott via eBay. I took a risk but found that the "big" Liddell, 8th ed., published American Book Company (New York: Cincinnati: Chicago) was typeset and not the undesirable offset. At a savings of about $100, I got the best version (the big Liddell) of the best lexicon (Liddell & Scott) with the clearest printing (typeset). There is no better lexicon for pagan or sacred writings in the classical or koine Greek.

49 of 53 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Intermediate is better for legibility and reference, September 20, 2002

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Diotima "Mantinea" (Western Australia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Greek-English Lexicon, Ninth Edition with a Revised Supplement (Hardcover)

The "big" Liddell & Scott is the one to buy when you're about to do your doctorate. Until then you would be better off with the Intermediate, and not just because it's only about a third the price and much easier to carry about. The Intermediate has a much clearer typeface and many students find its material more easily accessible.
The ninth edition of the "big" Liddell & Scott has been offset so many times that the print is faint and verging on the illegible. My copy actually has pieces of print missing. The Clarendon Press ought really to have the whole thing revised and reset. But what a daunting task! (It will probably end up being republished on disk.)

82 of 92 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Abridged Edition is an Excellent Lexicon, September 26, 2001

By 

David Bennett (United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Abridged Greek-English Lexicon (Hardcover)

This review is for the Abridged Liddell-Scott Lexicon...

I own the Intermediate sized Liddell as well, and I must say I actually prefer the smaller one. When I took a class where we read "The Apology of Socrates" by Plato, my professor recommended avoiding the Intermediate edition. At first I thought perhaps he was wrong, and I used it to translate some passages. After spending a lot of time sorting through it, I found that I agreed with him. The Intermediate Liddell does have locations of word use in original sources, and has slightly more vocabulary, but for the beginning and intermediate Greek reader, the Abridged Liddell is preferable. Navigating through the abridged edition is far easier and it often assumes a lesser knowledge of Greek, thus it includes some conjugated forms, which then point you to the correct verb. So as you can see, the abridged edition should suit the needs of most classical Greek students. Also, the editors took care to make sure that virtually every New Testament word is included.

Are there drawbacks to the Liddell-Scott? The Victorian English often gets frustrating. We rarely use words like hither and thither anymore. Also, when more morally explicit Greek words are defined, their definition is in Latin. Also, the original printing abnormalities, such as certain parts of letters being cut off from words, remain.

Learning Greek is a rewarding, but daunting task. The task is often made more difficult by grammars and lexicons that assume the reader knows more than he or she does. The abridged Liddell is perfect for the average student. When you want to dive in deeper, learn word origins, search sources, or just want to say you own the most complete Lexicon out there, you should buy the full size Liddell-Scott. Until then, the abridged edition works!