The Oxford Russian Dictionary [Hardcover]

Marcus Wheeler (Editor), Boris Unbegaun (Editor), Paul Falla (Editor), Della Thompson (Editor)

Editorial Reviews

Review

`a wonderful tool' L.K.Miller, Choice, February 2001

`a wonderful tool' L.K.Miller, Choice

Product Description

With the fall of the Iron Curtain, the Russian language has exploded, responding to new idioms, terminology, and usage pouring in from the West. Anyone wishing to keep up with contemporary Russian will search existing dictionaries in vain for such words as "cash machine," "road rage," "mobile phone," and many other terms reflecting the rapidly changing reality in the former Soviet Union.

This completely revised edition of The Oxford Russian Dictionary is the first to incorporate those changes. Offering a comprehensive look at both languages, it includes over 185,000 words and phrases and 290,000 translations. The dictionary provides exceptional coverage of regional Russian, British, and American dialects as well as of modern idioms and colloquial usage, with numerous illustrative examples. It also includes all common abbreviations and acronyms, such asP, ROM, AIDS, and others; helpful advice on difficult points of grammar; and pronunciation in the International Phonetic Alphabet for every English headword, an indispensable aid for Russian speakers. Features include:

DT * Over 185,000 words and phrases, and 290,000 translations to provide comprehensive coverage of contemporary Russian and English

DT * All the latest vocabulary from "hyperinflation" to "multimedia" and from "cash machine" to "electronic security system" and "road rage"

DT * Special emphasis on current idioms and colloquial usage with thousands of examples to illustrate their use

DT * The latest business, computing, and specialist vocabulary along with common abbreviations and acronyms

DT * Attractive layout to facilitate ease of use, improved typography, and Russian alphabet at the foot of each page

Unsurpassed in convenience and in comprehensive, reliable coverage, this new edition of The Oxford Russian Dictionary will be the first choice for students, teachers, translators, and anyone who needs to keep abreast of the Russian language as it is spoken today.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 1320 pages
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA; 3 edition (July 27, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0198601603
• ISBN-13: 978-0198601609
• Product Dimensions: 10.2 x 7.9 x 2.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #811,836 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

59 of 63 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars EXCELLENT Reference !!!!, May 14, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Oxford Russian Dictionary (Hardcover)

I had used three other Russian/English dictionarys but this has it all. It even has some 4 letter words you might find offensive. My wife is Russian and our communication has improved because of this fantastic dictionary. The meanings of words have been well researched and are translated exactly. I would recommend this reference for anyone learning Russian or for the Russian needing an English word equivilant.

23 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent reference, March 4, 2002

By	R. Aponte "Book nerd" - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: The Oxford Russian Dictionary (Hardcover)

As a Russian translator in the U.S. military, I have used this edition as well as earlier ones in my work, and I have to say that this is an improvement upon the others, which were already very good. A question for the reviewer who wrote that the back cover contained spelling mistakes in Russian: Where are they? I know the spelling system of the language quite well, and reading the back cover several times, I could find neither spelling mistakes nor incorrect case endings. As for word choice in Russian, it could be that native speakers would have phrased some things differently (as a non-native speaker, it's hard for me to judge), but the Russian text is certainly grammatically correct and the meaning is clearly conveyed.

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars best russian english dictionary, May 20, 2006

By	Reed Kotler (Sunnyvale, CA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: The Oxford Russian Dictionary (Hardcover)

I have many Russian English dictionaries, including some you can only get in Russia and some written entirely in Russian and this is by far the most complete and helpful dictionary I have. I use it almost exclusively.

I must confess though that I don't use the English-> Russian part very often. I'm usually translating from Russian. I usally learn new words from movies and books and am not looking up so many words just from English. In correspondence I use it and it always has what I need.

You can look up some of the most clever dialogue in films with this dictionary.

Of course, a dictionary is not a grammar book and there are stylistic things about Russian that create ennumerable combinations of useage that a dictionary cannot address.

There are some complaints I have but they are not addressed by any other dictionaries I have seen. For example, the ppp is troublesome because it's hard get the stress right and they try to put all the most common ones in there but they miss them sometimes but so do all the other dictionaries. In that case you have to guess from grammar rules or consult the real dictionaries for such that are written totally in Russian.

The only places it fails me are in situations where you need to go to a Russian dictionary that is written entirely in Russian. There are a few classics used there. It would not be possible in general to create such a dictionary for English speakers because the assumptions about language familiarity and grammar could not be met by any but fairly advanced users and in that case, why not just use the actual dictionary Russian speakers use?

If you want to buy one dictionary, get this one. Don't get the concise version though, spend the money and get the full version. It's worth it!