Traveler's Italian Dictionary: English-Italian/Italian-English (Cortina Dictionary) [Paperback]

Dilaver Berberi (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0805029117 | ISBN-13: 978-0805029116 | Publication Date: September 15, 1993

For businesspeople, students, travelers-- perfect for anyone who wants to quickly find a word, its pronunciation and use. This "pocket pal" can be used equally well by beginners or by those who already have a good working knowledge of the language.

Over 11,000 entries (5000+ Italian/English, 5000+ English/Italian). Pronunciation accompanies Italian words on both sides, along with helpful usage information.

Pronunciation Guide explains the sounds of Italian, how to produce and combine them-- takes the mystery out of developing a good accent!

Concise Italian Grammar for a quick overview or specific explanations; sections include nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, sentence formation, etc., plus verb tables for instant look-ups.

Phrases for Use Abroad gives you the right thing to say (and how to pronounce it) in a number of everyday situations.

Menu Reader, complete with pronunciation, ensures you'll never be surprised by what you order!

Editorial Reviews

Language Notes

Text: English, Italian --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 370 pages
• Publisher: Cortina (September 15, 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0805029117
• ISBN-13: 978-0805029116
• Product Dimensions: 6.2 x 3.7 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,109,073 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #40 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Reference > Dictionaries & Thesauruses > Foreign Language > Italian
  • #72 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Reference > Foreign Languages > Instruction > Italian

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

74 of 74 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Best Italian Pocket Dictionary, January 21, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Traveler's Italian Dictionary: English-Italian/Italian-English (Cortina Dictionary) (Paperback)

This is best Italian pocket dictionary for the traveler. It actually has the pronunciations of the Italian words (what a novel idea). It's verb summary is adequate and it includes the helping verbs (avere and essere) at the front of the list, where they can be quickly found (unlike the Berlitz dictionary where they are buried in with all the other verbs. It's shortcomings are that it includes fewer expressions and not as many entries at the Berlitz, but it's smaller and lighter. Go with this one for travel, especially if you're new to Italian.

4.0 out of 5 stars Good, not perfect, February 21, 2011

By 

RMG - See all my reviews

This review is from: Traveler's Italian Dictionary: English-Italian/Italian-English (Cortina Dictionary) (Paperback)

I am an American that lives in a non-English speaking area of Italy. I had no Italian speaking experience before moving. Overal, this is a good dictionary with common needed words.

It has the pronunciation, but the rules for cia and gia are not Roman Italian (normalized Italy) and are wrong. Ciao (hi)is pronounced ch-ah-oh in English, not ch-ee-ah-oh. Giorno (day) is pronounced j-or-noh, not jee-or-noh. Saying the way they pronounce it makes you sound like an American.

The cover could be more durable.

2.0 out of 5 stars Key words and phrases missing, February 11, 2011

By 

Eric Folley (Charlotte, NC United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Traveler's Italian Dictionary: English-Italian/Italian-English (Cortina Dictionary) (Paperback)

I carried this with me for two weeks in Italy in 2010. I speak un po', so I was looking for a quick reference for signs, menus, and vocabulary that wasn't on the tip of my tongue (which was more than I thought when I arrived in country).

And I was constantly frustrated by not finding what I was looking for. It wasn't like I was searching for obscure terms, but just constructs that any tourist would run into. Half the time, I was disappointed.

Pros: stress indicated, although it is indicated at the end of the syllabe, unlike most other dictionaries.

Cons: lack of vocab; parts of speech not indicated all the time; grammar section is weak. I realize that a dictionary is not a grammar book, but it takes only a few more pages to include various verb conjugations and pronomial constructs, and a 300 pg book could spare a few extra pages to be more useful.

I'm not throwing this out, but I'm also not making this my travel dictionary for this year's trip. Not sure what will take its place, so you if have advice, I'd love to hear it.