Vox New College Spanish and English Dictionary [Hardcover]

Vox (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0844279994 | ISBN-13: 978-0844279992 | Publication Date: January 11, 1984 | Edition: 1

The Vox New College Spanish and English Dictionary includes more than 250,000 headwords, phrases, and examples. It contains technical, scientific, and business terms not found in similar dictionaries. There's also a 60-page section, which contains frequently used Spanish and English idioms and expressions.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 1536 pages
• Publisher: McGraw-Hill; 1 edition (January 11, 1984)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0844279994
• ISBN-13: 978-0844279992
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 6.6 x 2.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 2.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #832,117 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Vox New College Spanish-English Dictionary, February 12, 2005

By 

Reader - See all my reviews

This review is from: Vox New College Spanish and English Dictionary (Hardcover)

I am very disappointed in this dictionary. It is large and has a lot of words, but it is frustrating for two reasons. First, when you look up a noun in English, it tells you the Spanish translation but does not tell you whether it's masculine or feminine. For instance, it tells you poster is "cartel," but you have to turn to the Spanish section to find out it's "el cartel." Second, the phrases and translations are awkward. Although this is a vulgar example, it's important: when you look up "pedo," it tells you the English translation is "wind from the anus." Who in English has ever said this? Look it up in Larousse, and as it should, it says "fart." I'm afraid to trust the expressions in the middle because I'm afraid I'll end up sounding ridiculous in Spanish the way a Spanish-speaker would sound ridiculous in English if he or she walked around saying "wind from the anus" and "go over like a lead balloon," which is the outdated expression they give as a translation for "caer mal." Overall, I'm going to stick with Larousse, which seems a lot more trustworthy to me.

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Not recommended, August 20, 2006

By 

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

This review is from: Vox New College Spanish and English Dictionary (Hardcover)

A dictionary should demonstrate good lexicographic technique and have an up-to-date-vocabulary. The Vox dictionary does neither.

Take a word with multiple meanings each of which which has a different translation. The Vox simply lists the words. For a Spanish speaker reading in English, this is enough, as the reader can look over the potential translations and choose the one which fits the context. But for the English reader writing in Spanish, this is hopelessly inadequate, as the dictionary gives no clue as to which translation to use in which situation.

Compare the treatment of such a word, loop, for example, 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.

Adequate treatment of words takes a tremendous amount of space. For example, in the Collins Spanish dictionary, a complex word like "get" takes up 730 lines. But in the Vox, the same word receives very skimpy treatment.

A good dictionary should cover all registers of language clearly, from the most formal all the way to cusswords, providing warnings and stylistically equivalent translations. A dictionary which fails to cover taboo language is not protecting its users but rather withholding information which could help them avoid trouble. But Vox either translates cusswords with formal translations or avoids them entirely.

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," "hard drive." But the compilers of the Vox have totally neglected this aspect; the lexicon of the work is even more outdated than its ancient publishing date of 1984 would suggest.

Based on the research I did for my Master's thesis, I would recommend Oxford, Larousse, and HarperCollins instead.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I strongly recomended to everyone!, April 1, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Vox New College Spanish and English Dictionary (Hardcover)

This dictionary is very good and I have used it for many years. I have yet to come across a word that I wasn't able to find. I love the middle section that gives you tons of expressions in one language and gives you the equivalent in the other.