I have collected some of the funniest expressions which
students have created without a dictionary or with an online one.
Using a language without a dictionary is very entertaining.
It means that you creatively play with your knowledge. The only trouble with it
is that other speakers will not understand you.
Still, noone can deny that people need a dictionary. Believe
me, it’s impossible to learn each and every word of a language. And it’s also
useless: why should you learn phrases used during crochet if you are a
gentleman who loves welding in his free time?
Here’s the list of the best dictionaries:
Online
Bab.la - BE CAREFUL! It is only useful if you already know the language and you need a
reply quickly. (limited bilingual versions)
- Thesaurus - f you are curious about the history of a phrase
or word. (English only)
Printed dictionaries are the best for students. You must
learn how to use them if you are preparing for a language exam because
examiners only allow the usage of these.
- Oxford dictionaries are the best because they are monolingual. You
will find a definition, synonyms and example sentences for the words. Very
useful if you want to write a good text (= with correctly chosen words).
- Dictionaries of synonyms are especially advised for those who need
English for their work.
-
Dictionaries are expensive. Do not choose cheap
ones because those contain few words with many mistakes.
