How to Use Dictionaries in

English Language Learning

 Contents

1 Why dictionaries?

2 Which one to choose?

3 How to use it?

4 Q&A
 Why do English
language learners
need dictionaries?
 Why dictionaries?

A craftsman who wishes to practice his craft

well must first sharpen his tools.

 Dictionaries help us learn new words.

 Dictionaries help us contextualize new vocabulary.

 Dictionaries help us build learner autonomy.

Which dictionary
should an English
language learner
choose?
 Which one?

 With so many dictionaries on the market,

sometimes it is simply baffling for the
learner to choose one. Here are some things
that needed to be considered:

 Types of dictionaries
 Native dictionaries vs. learner’s dictionaries
 Monolingual dictionaries vs. bilingual/bilingualized dictionaries
 Types of dictionaries
 Paper dictionaries
 Traditional; long-lasting and relatively cheap.
 Can be used as desk dictionaries.

 Online/Computerized dictionaries
 These dictionaries offer a vast amount of living examples, exercises and other
language activities; they are also easy to use with user-friendly search engines
and interface.
 Most of the online dictionaries are free.
 dictionary.cambridge.com; www.oed.com; www.ldoceonline.com;
www.merriam-webstercollegiate.com; www.dictionary.com

 Palmtop dictionaries
 A big plus of palmtop dictionaries is that they hold a large amount of data in a
small space, sometimes several paper dictionaries.
 The biggest problem lies, paradoxically, in their ease of use. Many students treat
them as pocket translators rather than serious tools of study.
BACK
 What’s the
difference between
a native language
dictionary and a
learner’s
贫穷 dictionary?

大小

Big&small
Example

Native language dictionary Learner’s dictionary

n. 1 a an umbelliferous noun 1 [U, C] a long pointed

plant, Daucus carota, with orange root vegetable.
a tapering orange-
coloured root. b this root
as a vegetable.

--The Concise Oxford --Oxford Advanced

Dictionary (COD9) Learner’s Dictionary
(OALD6)
Native language dictionary Learner’s dictionaries
      spelling       spelling
      pronunciation       pronunciation
      meaning       meaning
      grammar
      collocation
      register ( 语域 )
…
About learner’s dictionaries

To make monolingual English dictionaries

easily accessible to foreign learners.
The first English learner’s dictionary The
New Method English Dictionary was made
by Michael West in 1935.
Today most learner’s dictionaries adopt a
controlled defining vocabulary of 2-3000
words.
A list of learner’s dictionaries

Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary (6th edition, 2000, 

OALD6 )
Collins COBUILD English Dictionary for Advanced Learners 
(3rd edition, 2001, COBUILD3)
Macmillan English Dictionary for Advanced Learners (2002, 
MED) 
Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English (4th edition, 
2003, LDOCE4)
Cambridge Advanced Learner’s Dictionary (2nd edition, 
2003, CALD2)
Features of learner’s dictionaries

• Detailed grammatical information

• Attention to collocation
• Rich examples
• Information about word frequencies
• Explanatory notes

Examples
 Detailed grammatical information

suggest […] v.tr. 1 (often foll. by that + clause)

propose (a theory, plan, or hypothesis) (suggested to
them that they should wait; suggested a different
plan).

--The Concise Oxford Dictionary (COD9)

 Detailed grammatical information
suggest […] verb 1 ~ sth (to sb) to put forward an idea or a
plan for other people to think about SYN PROPOSE: [VN] May
I suggest a white wine with this dish, Sir? ◇ A solution
immediately suggested itself to me (= I immediately thought of a
solution). ◇ [V (that)] I suggest (that) we go out to eat. ◇ [V-
ing] I suggested going in my car. ◇ [VN that] It has been
suggested that bright children take their exams early. ◇ (BrE
also) It has been suggested that bright children should take
their exams early. 
HELP

You cannot ‘suggest somebody something’:Can you suggest

me a good dictionary?
--Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary (OALD6)
 Detailed grammatical information

Suggest can be followed by

1. a noun phrase, 

2. a noun phrase plus a prepositional phrase to somebody (not
    suggest somebody something), 

3. a that clause (with that being optional), 

4. the –ing form of a verb phrase;

5. and that in a construction like “It has been suggested that ...”
    the word that is obligatory;

6. and that in British English there may be the modal auxiliary
    should in the verb phrase of the that clause, otherwise the
     verb is in its base form.
 Attention to collocation

Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English

(LDOCE4 2003)

wind1
1 […] strong/high winds The forecast is for
strong winds and heavy rain. | gale/hurricane
force winds […] The light wind ruffled the water.
rain1
1 […] heavy/torrential/pouring rain (=a lot of
rain) There will be heavy rain in most parts of the
country. | The light rain had stopped.
 Attention to collocation

Knowledge (LDOCE4)

have knowledge
acquire/gain knowledge (= learn something)
technical/scientific knowledge
in-depth knowledge
detailed knowledge
specialist knowledge (= knowledge about a particular subject)
first-hand/personal knowledge (knowledge from experiencing
something for yourself) ...

You need specialist knowledge to do this job. | [+ of] His knowledge of

ancient civilization is unrivalled. | [+ about] the need to increase
knowledge about birth control | Many of the students did not have much
knowledge of American history. | salesmen with good technical
knowledge of what they are selling ...
 Rich examples

LDOCE4 contains the largest number

of examples—155,000 in all. On its
CD-ROM there are 80,000 additional
examples plus over a million corpus
sentences.
 Information about word frequencies

LDOCE4 marks the first 3000 most

frequently used words in speech and
writing in the form of

S1 S2 S3 W1 W2 W3
 Information about word frequencies
In Macmillan English Dictionary there are also
three frequency bands, but they cover about
7,300 words:

★★ ★ 2300 very high frequency words

★★ 2360 high frequency words
★ 2640 quite high frequency words.
 Information about word frequencies
COBUILD3 distinguishes five frequency
bands totaling 14,600 words:

◆◆◆ ◆◆ 680 words

◆◆◆ ◆◇ 1040 words
◆◆◆ ◇◇ 1580 words
◆◆◇ ◇◇ 3200 words
◆◇◇ ◇◇ 8100 words
Information about word frequencies

How many
English
words do you
have?

3000 talk about a wide range of everyday

topics and read simplified English books

7000 have a basic working knowledge of

English

14000 as proficient as a good English-major

graduate
 Explanatory notes

LDOCE4

WORD CHOICE: call, phone, telephone, ring

In spoken English, it is usual to say that you call or
phone someone: He calls me almost every day. |
Phone me when you get there.
In spoken British English, it is also very usual to say
that you ring someone: Have you rung Kim yet?
It is fairly formal and not very usual in spoken English
to say that you telephone someone.
[...]
 Explanatory notes

LDOCE4

WORD FOCUS: words meaning CHEAP

reasonable not too expensive | economical used
about cars, systems, or methods that do not cost a lot
of money to use | be good value to be well worth the
price you pay | be a bargain to be very cheap
 Explanatory notes
LDOCE4

GRAMMAR (just) in case

in case is followed by the simple present, the simple
past, or ‘should’: Write it down in case you forget (NOT
in case you will forget). | I had a snack, just in case
there was no time (NOT in case there would be no
time) to eat later. | Here’s a contact number, in case
there should (NOT will/would) be a problem.
[…]
BACK
 What’s the difference
between bilingual
dictionaries and
bilingualized
dictionaries?

A bilingual dictionary ( 双语词典 ) is one in which the

headwords are in one language and the definitions
in another language.

Bilingualized dictionaries ( 双解词典 ) are native

language dictionaries with foreign language
translation.
Bilingual dictionaries

《新英 汉词典 》 (A
New English-Chinese
Dictionary, 2000)
Bilingualized dictionaries

Oxford Advanced Learner’s

English-Chinese Dictionary 
《牛津 高阶英 汉双 解词
典》 , 1997
 Which dictionary?

My advice (1)
        Start  by  using  a  bilingualized 
English  learner’s  dictionary 
and switch to the latest edition 
of  a  monolingual  learner’s 
dictionary.
 Which dictionary?

My advice (2)
    Do install a computerized 
dictionary on your PC. 
 Which dictionary?

My advice (3)
    Better not to use pocket 
dictionaries and palmtop 
electronic dictionaries 
without examples. When you 
do use palmtop dictionaries, 
treat them with the dignity 
and respect a thick paper 
dictionary deserves. 
 How should
language learners
use their
dictionaries?
 How to use dictionaries

 Now you have made your pick of dictionaries! How to

use them? Here are a few guidelines.

 Read the guide to the dictionary and familiarize yourself with all
the symbols, abbreviations, and note markers. (Turn to
dictionaries for example.)
 When you look up a word in the dictionary, make sure you find the
following information: pronunciation, its meaning in the context,
examples, and collocation.
 Consolidate what you’ve just learned by making a few sentences
of your own or by finishing the exercises provided.
 Pay special attention to any notes attached – differences between
AmE & BrE, usage notes, etc.
 If possible, try to extend your knowledge of the word – other major
meanings, grammar notes, synonyms/antonyms, reflections, etc.
 Let’s take
“suggest” as an
example!
 Everything about him suggested a carefully
dressed authority.

 Look up this word in :

 Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English (4th edition, 2003,
LDOCE4)
 Cambridge Advanced Learner’s Dictionary (2nd edition, 2003,
CALD2)
 And their respective computerized versions.
 LDOCE 4 CALD 2

Layout All meanings listed Layout The word has 3 entries,

under the same each with a different
headword, each with meaning with respective
respective synonyms synonyms, verb endings,
and word building

Definiti Plainer Definiti Simple enough

ons ons
With related phrases Phrases incorporated into
examples

Others Word origin, phrase bank, Others Smart thesaurus with all the
examples bank synonyms and examples
Language activator with listed
synonyms listed under
different contexts
Do you have any
questions?