Customer Reviews

Concise English-Chinese Chinese-English Dictionary

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

The five stars are for being ubiquitous; since it first appeared in 1986 every foreign student in China has been carrying this dictionary around, or the locally published version (Shangwu Yinshuguan). It does have a couple of small drawbacks - firstly that the one page appendix of province names at the back could have been expanded to list more than the capital town in each and also foreign countries and cities, secondly that, yes, the text is microscopic, but then if it wasn't you couldn't carry it in your pocket all day. And finally, a third failing lamented by many is the lack of menu Chinese; not even gongbao jiding (palace-fry chicken-cubes) gets a listing. However the one great thing about this dictionary is that it is the only pocket dictionary with both pinyin and characters. It also has a uniquely sensible character indexing system.

For desk work the best medium sized Chinese-English dictionary is Han-Ying Cidian by Waiyu Jiaoxue yu Yanjiu Chubanshe, Beijing, (ISBN 7-5600-1325-2) which shares the little red book's character index system, and the best English-Chinese is the giant Ying-Han Dacidian or 'English-Chinese Dictionary Unabridged' edited by Lu Gusun (Shanghai Yiwen Chubanshe (ISBN 7-5327-1321-0).

Non-English speakers note that this dictionary is also available in French (Larousse), German (Langenscheidt), and Japanese (Toho Shoten) versions, or in the corresponding Shangwu Yinshuguan editions published in China.

this dictionary is wonderful for the beginner, but will soon be outgrown by the serious student of Chinese. Though the characters are small, a little experience with characters will make it easy. This book is best used as a second reference used sparingly once you have got intermediate communication skills.

Although I see that many people have a problem with the fact that many of the characters are too small, but this problem doesn't require a magnifying glass, you can simply use the pin yin to find the word in the Chinese - English section, the characters there are much larger. Its great if your looking for a REAL dictionary, not some wimpy beginners guides, and pocket travel books.

after reading other reviews: wow, let it go. I suppose its different for me, its supplementary, being Chinese I use it for a quick look up for characters I have forgotten. A good friend of mine who is (not Chinese) learning Chinese is in love with this dictionary and has learned a lot from it. He owns the same edition only in larger print.

Its lightweight and I don't mind the little letters being blessed by good eyesight. I mean, all in all, if you wanted to learn the language, keep in mind, this is just a dictionary and should be used as a tool, not the actual educational reference.

I would personally recommend it based upon the fact that it is both English-Chinese and Chinese-English with a radical section and accurate pinyin. There is also a degree of personal satisfaction, its nothing more or less than what I needed.

Carrying around Chairman Mao's Quotations won't get you very far in China these days, but the Concise English-Chinese / Chinese-English Dictionary is a lifesaver for exchange students or really any traveler who plans to spend more than a week in mainland China.

The print is tiny although the contrast is good, and hey, you're young and your eyes can handle it! In all seriousness, this is the size of a pocket dictionary so it has to be small. Pinyin and Simplified Chinese but also includes many equivalent Traditional characters. It provides the resources to translate in both directions (ENG-->CN, CN-->ENG). The radical index at the start of the Chinese-English section is one of the best features. Plenty of compound words and common phrases in context.

I carried this around China and noticed many other long-term foreigners did, too. If you don't already have a copy before you go, you can easily find it in country. Mine cost eight and a half yuan (which was less than two bucks back in the early Nineties).

Published by Oxford University Press (Commercial Press in China); my edition is from 1990. Turtleback (cardboard reinforced) binding makes it sturdy, and the pages have rounded corners which is nice since extensive thumbing would wear them down anyway!

The newest edition appears to have vinyl covers and perhaps even a new editor:
Concise English-Chinese / Chinese-English Dictionary (Third Edition)

When I began learning Chinese, this was the first dictionary I chose. I liked that it was two-way, because after looking up something I like to double check it in the other direction. I also liked that it included both pinyin and radical look-up, so that I could use it for oral communication as well as written communication. Finally, I liked that Oxford is a trusted name in English dictionaries.

Unfortunately, I am surprised by just how often I find this "concise" dictionary too concise. To clarify, I should mention that my Chinese is only at the beginner to intermediate level. To tease the user, many of the words that are not defined in the dictionary do show up in the radical index so that you can determine their pronounciation but not their meaning.

My other peeve is related to the way this dictionary handles traditional characters. I knew when I bought this dictionary that it was simplified. This was not my first choice, but I was satisfied by the fact that it included the traditional forms as well. However now that I have had a chance to use it I find the handling of the traditional characters to be inconsistent.

In spite of my complaints, this dictionary remains the best serious, portable, two-way dictionary I have been able to find thus far. This does not mean that I am satisfied with it... I am still looking for the "right" dictionary for me.

well, i agree with everyone, the traditional characters ARE way too small, and with no place names, wow, that's useful? however, why am i being so mean? it's a useful compact little thing, with BOTH pinyin and characters, so it isn't all bad. but if you're really serious about learning chinese, get a bigger dictionary, you'll be able to see better...

Although this dictionary defines many words from the Chinese sufficiently, the translations from English are often not understood by Chinese people. The authors choose obscure wordings for day to day things like Broccoli, tomatos, etc.... Its compact size makes it very convient for travelling, but if you are striving for greater clarity when conversing with Chinese persons, I suggest finding another dictionary.

This was my first Chinese dictionary, but it has been passed over by time. Don't buy this dictionary, if you must buy an Oxford dictionary, go with the much larger and easier on the eyes edition (ISBN 0195911512). Even better yet, buy the ABC Chinese Dictionary (ISBN 082482766X), which allows you to look up by the alphabetized listing of the complete Chinese word in pinyin, not the two-step head character-second character system used on Oxford Concise.

The Chinese character strokes blur together to create ureadable solid black squares. Non Chinese readers cannot copy these characters, even with a microscope.