+- kanji koohii FORUM (http://forum.koohii.com)
+-- Forum: Learning Japanese (http://forum.koohii.com/forum-4.html)
+--- Forum: Learning resources (http://forum.koohii.com/forum-9.html)
+--- Thread: A good Japanese-English English-Japanese Dictionary (/thread-3370.html)
A good Japanese-English English-Japanese Dictionary - sushidushi - 2009-06-24
Perhaps I am being as bit dim, but I can't find a topic offering advice on a good Japanese-English English-Japanese dictionary. Any suggestions?
I want to steer clear of romaji, if possible. If the dictionary has proper Japanese text, with furigana to transliterate kanji, but also shows romaji, that's all right, but I want to avoid becoming over-reliant on romaji.
Does anyone know Kodansha's Furigana Japanese Dictionary? There are Japanese-English and English-Japanese versions, and one that combines both. It seems to be good, but I have never seen it in real life, so would welcome any comments before committing to it.
Thanks.
A good Japanese-English English-Japanese Dictionary - Delina - 2009-06-24
I have Kodansha's Furigana J-E/E-J dictionary (in one volume) and I think it's great. In both sections (E-J and J-E) it provides example sentences in both English and Japanese for all but the most concrete words. This helps to get a feel for words that have different meanings, the right particle to use with which verb, and words that may translate from Japanese into a familiar English word but are used differently.
Also, it's not enormous - thick but not too big, so it's very information-dense and not too hard to carry around.
A good Japanese-English English-Japanese Dictionary - rich_f - 2009-06-24
See my reply here:
http://forum.koohii.com/showthread.php?pid=58459#pid58459
The Kodansha dictionary is okay, but you'll outgrow it fast. An online dictionary like dic.yahoo.co.jp is great if you use an SRS, because you can just copy/paste right into it.
Free is better than $60 anytime in my book. Save the $60 and buy some books.
A good Japanese-English English-Japanese Dictionary - sushidushi - 2009-06-24
Thanks. I do specifically want a real book. I'm old and feel more comfortable with books. And, more to the point, I don't always have access to a computer.
But, I shall certainly also look at free on-line stuff too. Anything that helps...
Thanks again.
A good Japanese-English English-Japanese Dictionary - Jarvik7 - 2009-06-24
研究社新和英大辞典, nothing else matters.
It does cost one or two hundred dollars in deadtree form, but deadtree dictionaries are borderline useless.
A good Japanese-English English-Japanese Dictionary - sushidushi - 2009-06-26
Actually, printed dictionaries are bloody useful if you're not in front of a computer, and if you like browsing dictionaries and other books. I like them.
A good Japanese-English English-Japanese Dictionary - mistamark - 2009-06-26
I stumbled on a good overview of various dictionaries here
http://www.gally.net/translation/kokugo.htm
A good Japanese-English English-Japanese Dictionary - Surreal - 2009-06-27
This is kind of related and I didn't want to start a new thread so about Rikaichan: how do I make it stay on? It's super annoying, I activate rikaichan to check something but a minute later when I try it on a new compound, it won't do anything until I deactivate/activate it and I have no idea why. Side-note: is there some way to turn off the translations in Rikaichan? I find myself trying to avoid reading the translations, feels silly...
A good Japanese-English English-Japanese Dictionary - magamo - 2009-06-27
In my humble opinion, 新和英大辞典 published by 研究社 is the best J-E dictionary. The Japanese entries are written by Japanese experts on the Japanese language so the dictionary represents the current natural usages and include idiomatic phrases that other J-E dictionaries often fail to explain. It's so well-designed native Japanese speakers can use it as a simple usage dictionary of their mother tongue.
You might be overwhelmed by the sheer amount of usages a single word has because the Japanese entries include a bunch of usages even J-J dictionaries for native speakers don't explain. But if you really want to be good at Japanese, it's a must-have if you ask me. Normally I don't recommend a bilingual dictionary to learn a foreign language, but it's a rare tome you can use to deepen your understanding through various idiomatic example sentences.
I often answer questions about word usage on this forum, and I often find the right examples that illustrate the point in question in this dictionary. Your average J-E dictionary and textbook suck so hard in this regard, which I think is the reason why learners keep posting questions in the first place.
As for E-J dictionaries, I have yet to see a decent one that I can recommend to Japanese learners. I think every E-J dictionary equally sucks when it comes to learning Japanese. If you have to resort to an E-J dictionary, you most likely come out sounding like a machine translator. I understand sometimes you just need to know the Japanese equivalent of an obscure noun like the name of your favorite flower, though.
A good Japanese-English English-Japanese Dictionary - Jarvik7 - 2009-07-03
sushidushi Wrote:Actually, printed dictionaries are bloody useful if you're not in front of a computer, and if you like browsing dictionaries and other books. I like them.I always have an ipod touch, denshi jisho, or DS somewhere handy.
A good Japanese-English English-Japanese Dictionary - Musashi - 2009-07-03
Jarvik7 Wrote:Yeah, get a electronic dictionary, that's the way to go these days and way faster. DS is also a cheaper option and can play (surpise) games.sushidushi Wrote:Actually, printed dictionaries are bloody useful if you're not in front of a computer, and if you like browsing dictionaries and other books. I like them.I always have an ipod touch, denshi jisho, or DS somewhere handy.
A good Japanese-English English-Japanese Dictionary - sushidushi - 2009-07-07
Thanks, all. I understand why people prefer electronic resources, but I just love real books. The fact that they are slower to use is, in some ways, an advantage. I often intend to check one word and end up spending ages flipping pretty much randomly through the dictionary to look up things that catch my eye.
Not a good way of knocking off 200 kanji a day or anything, but it's fun.