Customer Reviews

The Oxford Russian Desk Dictionary

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

 

 

No other pocket dictionary compares to this one. I have studied Russian for two years part time and have been to Russia 6-7 times, using this book all the while. All other pocket dictionaries that I have seen are inferior w/r/t quality and completeness. This one is the choice of the experts, and I couldn't agree more. It is rare for a pocket dictionary to give several nuances in English for the same Russian word. Also,often there are short useful phrases associated with certain words.This pocket dictionary is an excellent choice for travellers.

This pocket Russian dictionary is one of the best that I've used.
It shows all perfective and imperfective verbs, it includes irregular verb endings
and indicates the accent (udarenie) of all Russian words.
I disagree with the poor rating given by a reader that complained about the lack of Cyrillic transliteration.
This dictionary is for people who ALREADY know the Cyrillic alphabet.
A great dictionary at a great price!

This book accompanied me on my trip to Belarus this summer. It was an indespensable item in the daily chores of communication with my belarussian host and friends. It has for its size and scope the best working range of any book in its class. I can only recommend it for any one who would like to learn the russian language.

I found the content excellent, however I agree with the other reviewer that it is poorly bound. Mine fell apart after three weeks. On a trip pocket dictionaries like this will be in daily use and take quite a pounding. Regrettably, this book is just not up to it.

I have both the Katzner English-Russian Dictionary and this one. Each dictionary has its advantages and disadvantages. I have not had my Oxford dictionary long enough to see if it falls apart like many say it does.
The Katzner dictionary has longer entries, for instance giving 9 different possible meanings (and example phrases) for the verb "to present", whereas the Oxford Dictionary only gives 3 meanings and only one example. On the other hand, THe Oxford dictionary has page markers on the edges of the pages, so you can more easily find listings pertaining to a certain letter, which helps if you are just learning the Russian alphabet. THe Katzner dictionary does not have this. (But I taped letter markers on my Katzner dictionary). One other considerable drawback of the Oxford dictionary, especially for beginners, is that whereas the main listing of each word is given in the printed text version of the alphabet in bold, the example phrases or references underneath each listing are given in RUSSIAN SCRIPT text, which in some cases differs significantly from the alphabet in its print version. Beginners wanting to stick to learning just the print text version of the alphabet at the outset will find an obstacle here, but those intent on learning both print and script forms of the alphabet at once may not be bothered.
Also, I noticed that the Oxford dictionary has listings of the vulgar (obscene) words like f*** and s***, and a slew of others which the Katzner dictionary has none of. While you may not want to speak such words yourself, you might want to know if a Russian speaker is referring to you in some of these terms!

Warning- for occasional use only-- the pages are poorly bound and fall right out. No matter what the content is, if a book doesn't stay together, it's time to move on. I want to have a book, not pages and pages.

This dictionary is excellent. I rarely find words which aren't listed, and the definitions including common phrases make finding the correct translation fairly easy. But, as others have stated, the pages started falling out almost immediately. It doesn't seem to be just this dictionary either, as the Russian course I purchased at the same time (Oxford's Take Off In Russian) also has its pages falling out. I hope Oxford does something about this as it really takes away from their otherwise excellent books.

Another reviewer stated the dictionary doesn't have the alphabet, but mine definitely includes one as part of the pronunciation guide in the beginning. Russian pronunciation is much more straightforward than English, so pronunciations aren't listed for Russian words.

5 stars for content, 1 star for binding.

Although this book has more listings in it than the old Romanov standby, which would appear promising, there are significant shortcomings. I have purchased 2 copies, and neither has lasted longer than 4 weeks. I am translating just about every day, and I do use a small dictionary extensively, but I believe that any paperback dictionary should be able to hold up to the repeated use for which it is supposedly designed.

I hesitated about purchasing this because of the previous reviews about the binding. Ultimately, I decided the complaints were older and maybe it would be less of a problem now. The silly things I think when I'm overtired!

I opened the package, removed the book, laughed with family about how it was so not pocket-sized, and when I opened it to flip through, a chunk of about 100 pages came out (in a chunk, thankfully, and not flying around the room). Looking at the top of the binding, it doesn't even look like it ever TRIED to hold those pages in. The cover is just ... not large enough. It's mostly the beginning section with information on grammar and whatnot, and I could almost forgive the problem if that was all, but a number of pages from the "A" section are in the free-floating chunk as well.

I considered returning it, but truth is, it was 11 bucks. And this probably won't seriously discourage me from using it. I'm teaching myself mostly for the sake of reading, not even necessarily writing or speaking, and I have a feeling it'll be fine for expanding my vocabulary now that I've gone through a book that provided me with a solid handle on Cyrillic. Which reminds me -- if you don't know anything about the alphabet, please don't try to start with a dictionary. Pick up something specifically about how to read and write the alphabet, or find something online. Or pick up the dictionary, too, and use them together.

But anyway, if you're rough on books in general, planning on using this nonstop, etc... Oxford is great, but look for something else with a sturdier binding (preferably in an actual bookstore, and then come order it here if you have to), or get the full-sized version if you're really serious. I might get the full-sized myself, who knows.

great for occasional use. but ive had it for one day, have only opened and read it once, put it on my dresser and now the back is already coming undone. but the information inside the book is great. only wish the book had better uality.