The Education Blog

Dictionaries are always handy and very helpful regardless of the subject you’re learning. Some people think that dictionaries are needed only when you’re learning a new language, but in reality, there are types of dictionaries that can help you out even if you’re learning chemistry, biology or other subjects.

Here are several popular dictionary types

• Technical Dictionaries. If you need help with the explanation of terms specific to a field of profession and study, a technical dictionary (a.k.a., specialized dictionary) will be very helpful. Technical dictionaries give the explanations of words concerning a specific field. These dictionaries can be multi-field, which means that they cover two or more fields but in a general way. The single-field dictionaries cover only one topic, and the sub-field technical dictionaries go even narrower to only one part of a field.

• Pronunciation dictionaries. These dictionaries will help you to speak correctly. You can see the phonetic transcription of the word right next to its definition. When choosing a pronunciation dictionary, always pay attention to the language dialect. For example, the pronunciation of American English and British English is different, so you should make sure which one you need before making a purchase. The majority of the online pronunciation dictionaries give the opportunity to listen to how the word is pronounced.

• Lingual dictionaries. These dictionaries are the most common types. They can be mono-lingual (explaining the meaning of the word in that specific language), bilingual (giving the definition of the word in another language) and multi-lingual (gives the translation of the word in several languages). There are even slang dictionaries that give the definitions of the slang words in the language. For bilingual dictionaries you can consider Larousse online dictionaries. They  give an opportunity to translate not only words but also texts. Merriam-Webster’s and Oxford American dictionaries are also stand among the best ones.

• Thesaurus dictionaries. This type will be extremely handy for writing essays or articles. They provide synonyms and antonyms.

• Biographical dictionaries. They include the names of people and a little from their biographies. The names are usually narrowed down to people in a specific field.

• Etymological dictionaries. These dictionaries provide the origins of a word and from what language those origins come from.

Merriam-Webster’s online dictionary, besides being a definition dictionary, is also a thesaurus,  etymological and medical dictionary. The printed version of this dictionary will also be a great help when you don’t have internet access around you.

Including a dictionary in your study strategy will make your work quicker and more efficient.

Photo: ©   Horia Varlan

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