The Concise Oxford Spanish Dictionary [Hardcover]

Nicholas Rollin (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 28, 2005 | ISBN-10: 0198609779 | ISBN-13: 978-0198609773 | Edition: 3

Drawing on the major new edition of the highly acclaimed Oxford Spanish Dictionary published in 2003, this third edition of the Concise Oxford Spanish Dictionary contains up-to-date coverage of over 170,000 words and phrases, and 240,000 translations, with hundreds of new words in each language. New additions include bioterrorism, rate tart, spread betting, stability pact, and stealth tax.

This new edition also includes the introduction of some popular features of the Oxford Spanish Dictionary such as a spread on text messaging in Spanish, and notes on the life and culture of countries of the Spanish-speaking world.

The design has been transformed by the use of colour and a new presentation of the dictionary information, making this dictionary more accessible and easier than ever to use, and an essential tool for those who need an authoritative and concise guide to Spanish and English.

Editorial Reviews

Review

`This marvellously simple package could prove a godsend for students of German . . . who write, translate and research by computer . . ..' Computer Active (5.04.2001) --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Language Notes

Text: English, Spanish --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 1502 pages
• Publisher: Oxford University Press; 3 edition (January 28, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0198609779
• ISBN-13: 978-0198609773
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 6.4 x 2.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.7 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #284,818 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the best available, December 17, 2006

By 

Doug Rice (Twin Falls, ID USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Concise Oxford Spanish Dictionary (Hardcover)

My Master's thesis was a review and rating of large Spanish-English dictionaries. Though the title says "concise," this work at 1500 pages falls under the category of large. I find it, like all the other Oxford dictionaries, to be a good choice.

Here are a few of the factors which distinguish a good bilingual dictionary from a bad one.

To begin with, ignore certain publishers' marketing ploys such as entry and translation counts. They say nothing about the value of the words chosen.

The first valid factor to consider is lexicographic technique. A bad dictionary simply lists translations. Take, for example, the entry in the Cassell's Spanish Dictionary under the English headword loop: "lazo, gaza, nudo; ojal, presilla, alamar; anillo; recodo, comba, curva, vuelta," etc. For the English reader writing in Spanish, this is hopelessly inadequate, as the dictionary provides no clue as to which translation to use in which situation.

Compare the treatment of the same word in the far superior American Heritage Spanish Dictionary. "(length of line) lazo; (coil) vuelta; (bend) curva; (circular path) vuelta, circuito; (fastener) presilla" etc. Here, the user is given glosses in the native language to assist in identifying the right word for the context. Example sentences are also a tremendous help. Oxford is excellent in this respect, presenting good information to guide users through the semantic and syntactic complexities of translation.

Second, a good dictionary should maintain an up-to-date lexicon, including such cultural and technological additions to the language as "baby sitter," "hostile takeover," "software," "flash drive." Oxford is a leader in this respect; its frequent revisions are more than mere window dressing and do a creditable job of covering the most recent additions to the language.

Third, idioms, slang, and cusswords can present real problems to the language learner, and a dictionary needs to handle them in a clear and frank fashion. This dictionary gets it right, giving stylistic equivalents for translations as well as clear advice to the user.

The Oxford Concise has a practical "language in use" section, which gives sample formats for correspondence as well as functions such as introduction, exposition, agreement, and disagreement.

Be careful when you choose a bilingual dictionary, as some of the choices--Cassell's and Vox, for example--are downright terrible. The field of large dictionaries stays relatively static over time, and the best choices in it by far are Oxford, Collins, and Larousse.