Customer Reviews

The Oxford English-Arabic Dictionary of Current Usage (English and Arabic Edition)

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

 

 

Still a beginning student not yet qualified to comment on many aspects of this dictionary, I am however very pleased with the large, clear, easy-on-the-eyes Arabic font in this full-size edition. I steered away from the smaller formatted and much cheaper edition for fear that as a new reader I would not be able to make out the intricate script. [Years ago as a student of Khmer, another fairly intricate writing system, I first found myself reading documents with a magnifying glass, but once I reached a more advanced level everything seemed clear enough. I imagine it takes most students a while to adjust to what at first seems to be very strange and tiny scribbles.] Most Arabic entries seem fully voweled, so I do not see the need for the English phonetics that another reviewer demanded. I used the "Fun with Arabic" CD-ROM to get past the phonetics. I'm pleased at what I got for my money. I also followed another reviewer's suggestion and ordered the Al Mawrid dictionary as well. If you are going to put in the huge amount of time required to learn a foreign language, you'd best invest early in the game.

To the person who left one star: you're an idiot. Why are you using a dictionary if you can't even read both languages?

This dictionary is very useful for English speakers who are serious students of Arabic. It makes distinctions between words that are homonyms in English which can be a major point of confusion in translation during one's early studies (for instance, do you mean rail as in to complain or what the choo-choo rides on?).

This dictionary also contains some idiomatic usage which will help those who are trying to string thoughts together with a little flare.

Of course for Arabic-English, Hans-Weir will always be the golden standard for students.

There is not much choice of English - Arabic dictionaries. This one is good, and unlike many the Arabic text is very clear and legible. However, it does tend to omit the plurals in Arabic. e.g. it does not show the Arabic plural of the English word "door." Nor does it give the Arabic root of the word. Given the high price of this dictionary, these shortcomings are irritating. It would be good if the publisher would provide rather more value for money in the next edition.

I received a copy of the first edition (1972). It's not appropriate to call an edition something "of Current Usage" if it is already 37 years old.

I am really amazed how people who can not even read arabic give one star to that huge piece of work. Of course, the best dictionary for arabic learners is the russian Baranov, but, for people who use English and not Russian - this one is the best.

This Oxford English-Arabic dictionary that I received was "used" but in excellent condition. It is a wonderful resource for English speakers who are trying to learn Arabic.

This dictionary does not come close to Oxford's Spanish-English English-Spanish dictionary. There are so many strange/obscure/archaic(?) usages that no English speaker uses, unless they still do in Great Britain. For the life of me I can't remember the last time i was "plied" with questions or "revolved" a problem in my mind, rather than mull it over. The smaller one doesn't have as many specialized terms, but I'd pick it over this one in a trice. That apparently means "in the blink of an eye" and I had to read the Arabic to get what that means. This edition also hasn't been updated since 1972 and still costs a bundle.

its the best and most useful dictionary i have ever rea

I have used an English/Japanese dictionary that had the Japanese pronuciation in English characters as well as in Japanese. This book contains no such function. If you don't read Arabic, this book is of very limited use. You will have no way of determining the pronunciation. THIS BOOK DOES NOT SUPPORT SELF STUDY! Such an obvious oversight by the Editors and Publishers of this book is deeply disappointing.