Customer Reviews

Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary of Current English

5 star:		(53)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

No other book on my bookshelf is more worn out. I use it all the time. When I started to study English I used to use an English / Portuguese (my first language) dictionary but I could only actually improve my English when I started using the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary.

The dictionary has lots of pictures (over 1700) for words that can be explained but for which a picture is much more effective like "hinge". The words have a pronunciation guide with a mark (') showing the main stress. There are many useful appendixes like irregular verbs conjugation, usage of numbers, punctuation, family relationships and a few colorful maps.

Over 220 usage notes clarify the subtle differences among words such as dealer trader and merchant. Although it's mainly a British English dictionary the differences in spelling, use or pronunciation between American English and British English are stressed.

By far the most interesting feature is the extremely reduced defining vocabulary constituted of 3500 words. The great majority of definitions are written using that reduced defining vocabulary. This simplifies the definitions and it's a great starting vocabulary for the beginners. The use of such a small defining vocabulary rules out the use of this dictionary as a thesaurus but the advantages compensate this drawback.

My copy is a paper back that has been reinforced with adhesive tape. This makes the dictionary lighter and handy. I used to put it on my back pack and take it to all my classes when I started college in USA.

The drawbacks are the need of an additional thesaurus and the fact that the entries are not syllabified. Nevertheless I would give it 10 stars if I could.

Leonardo Alves - December 2000

We are professional Education Consultants and have researched ELT dictionaries for a number of years. There can be no doubt that the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary is the best dictionary for English language students, teachers, and schools - scoring consistently highly under objective and subjective research.

It offers clear, concise, contextual explanations of head words - helping students to master the skills of working with an English-English (rather than a foreign language-English) dictionary. As an authoritative reference, its framework of language is closely related to the English language examinations run by the UK examination boards - making it an essential learning aid for students working towards an English language qualification.

We have taken feedback from students worldwide, and the OALD has scored consistently high "suitability" ratings - making it ideal for students from Asia, Europe, Scandinavia, South America, Africa, and the Indian Subcontinent studying British English at an Intermediate level (pre First Certificate) or above. END

Excellent dictionary for the student of english as a foreign language. It gives many examples of the different usages of words. It also provides very useful comparisons of words with similar meaning to clarify their appropiate usage. It does not contain, though, american idioms.

My English teacher, the rewiewers of the 1,995 edition and the rewiewer of this edition have said that this dictionary is one of the best that are available now. I think that only the Collins English Dictionary is better, but the Collins is too technical and very difficult for normal people.

Certainly, this dictionary is very, very good. The A-Z part is very useful. It has got more than 3,000 words with very clear meanings and with little articles about grammar, diffences with words with similar meanings (e.g. to say and to tell) and differences with Brittish English and American one. This part also included the word's phonetic part.

The appendixes in the beginning and in the ending of the dictionary helps you to understand this dictionary and complete the teacher's explanations in grammar, ortography and vocabulary (like a 2nd teacher).

The language study pages in the middle are ideal for a better English writting in letters, CVs, resumés, e-mails, etc.

The colour illustrations make this dictionary superb. They are about basic vocabulary and they have got maps of the UK, Ireland, the US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the Caribbean Islands, a map of the world and an interesting part the globe and the seasons.

This dictionary is complete with topic pages about computers, musical instruments, the kitchen, health and sports. They are in black and white, but they are interesting for learning more vocabulary, grammar and ortography about these themes.

Finally, this dictionary is for students. However, native English speakers, ELT teachers and English experts will enjoy it.

I dont know why this book is not very popular inspite of being the best book to teach english in a simple manner. I used this dictionary during my GRE preparation and I found it very useful. I scored 700 on the verbal section (99%ile). I still have this book and use it first especially to see how the word is used in a sentence.

It wouldnot give you the origin of the word and other details of pronunciation, etc. But it would tell you the several meanings the word can have in a simple manner. More importantly it uses the word in a complete sentence. Doing so not only gives you the context but reinforces your memory. One problem with other dictionaries is that they give too long sentences (typically these sentences are popular or published in a newspaper). I hate those type of sentences. By the time you read the sentence you lose sight of what you are looking for. The sentences in this one are small sometimes just a short precise meaningful phrase.

I followed older edition. I saw the new edition and its even better. It has more pictures than the previous editions. Ofcourse if you want illustrated dictionary you shoudl go for the American Oxford Illustrated dictionary.

Grab this one right now if you are preparing for GRE or SAT. Also if you are looking for a dictionary which would give you meanings in a context then buy this dictionary.

I will not repeat what other reviewers have said about this classic learner's dictionary. It has been a valuable reference for ESL students for many decades. I own several learner's dictionaries published recently (Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English 4th Edition, Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary, and Collins Cobuild 3rd edition) and some of them have features this one does not have. But I still use this dictionary a lot and will continue to use it. I hope a new edition of it will come out soon.

Probally, This is the most easy-to-use dictionary:

- A lot of examples (90,000 aprox.);

- Pictures, diagrams;

- Some useful informations about the language.

This is the best reference book I have ever had. I use it every single day. What is the most appropriate word to be used? Do not you know? Never mind, it tells you. Phrasal verbs; Idioms; Special notes on usage; Hints on Grammar; Useful appendices, Smart examples; British and American Spelling; and much more. In short: "No doubt remains after consulting it"

If you're an ESL learner, and even if you're not, the new OALD is probably the only dictionary you'll need if you aren't looking for a larger dictationary like, say, the Concise OED. Another reason to consider this dictionary is that you not only want to know the meanings of words, you want to see exactly how the words are used.

A few things:
1) Among the market of 'learner's' dictionary, the OALD is the easiest to read and understand. The presentation and layout is sublime. It's user-friendly, uncluttered, and logical.

2) Get the CD-ROM Version! It contains British and American pronunciations of every headword, plus lots of other goodies including the Oxford Learner's Wordfinder Dictionary and the Guide to British and American Culture.

PS. Some reviewers mention problems with CD-ROM. Patches have been released at the OALD website that may solve these issues. I had some problems that went away after the patches. Also, the tech support from the CD-ROM department is excellent.

Read my longer review <a href="http://jeffyen.blogspot.com/2005/10/im-pondering-over-whether-to-buy-this.html">here</a>.

Be careful: it's highly addictive! I don't even remember when I began using this excellent dictionary. After using this dictionary you won't even think of consulting any other dictionary. It has been a big fellow to me and never lets me down in my Proficiency level studies. I simply love it.