This document discusses evaluating dictionaries and choosing the right dictionary. It defines what a dictionary is and describes the different types, including paper dictionaries, online dictionaries, and electronic dictionaries. It discusses why dictionaries are important and factors to consider when choosing a dictionary, such as clarity, focus, and special lists of entries. It provides recommendations for some of the best paper, online, and electronic dictionaries. It also lists some new words that were added to dictionaries in 2021 from areas like online communication, the COVID-19 pandemic, and new ways of working.

1. R AG H A D A B U TA L E B
D R . K H A L E E L A L - B ATA I N E H
EVALUATING A DICTIONARY
Amman Arab University
Department of English Language and Translation

2. WHAT IS DICTIONARY?
- reference resource which provides information about
words and their meanings, uses, and pronunciations. A
dictionary may be published as a printed book, or as a
digital product such as a website or app, and it may be
monolingual, bilingual, or multilingual.
- A list of words or phrases and their definitions arranged in
alphabetical order.
- help users look up definitions to get a better understanding
of the word and an overall better understanding of a
language or field

3. TYPES OF DICTIONARIES
• Paper dictionaries
• Online dictionaries
• Electronic dictionaries

4. WHY ARE DICTIONARIES IMPORTANT?
- A good dictionary can help you understand your subject
better, improve your communication and improve your
grades by making sure you are using words correctly.
- not all dictionaries are the same and if you don’t know how
to use a dictionary correctly, it could actually teach you the
wrong meaning of a word and make it more difficult to get a
good grade.

5. CHOOSING A DICTIONARY
Finding the right dictionary for your purposes and learning
to use it effectively are key to accurate translating, reading,
and researching. Contemporary dictionary resources come in
three forms: paper, online, and electronic. Since it’s difficult
to recommend a single “one-size-fits-all” tool, you’ll want to
consider a number of dictionaries of each variety before
settling on the best one(s) for your purposes.

6. PAPER DICTIONARIES
Pocket dictionaries with 50,000 to 70,000 entries are handy
for carrying around and looking up common items, but are
stopgaps with drawbacks: lack of clarity (caused by small
print and other space-saving approaches) and a lack of
completeness. Novice readers soon become advanced ones
and become frustrated with limited resources.

7. PAPER DICTIONARIES
Serious students and researchers are better served by a
standard, hardcover dictionary comprised of at least 150,000
to 300,000 entries in each language and prefaced with a
clear outline of the system of entries and information that it
contains.

8. PAPER DICTIONARIES
It’s important to read through the introduction of the
dictionaries you’re considering. In each look up key words,
including (1) contemporary jargon in your field to see if the
dictionary is up to date; (2)?several noun entries to see how
gender and plural forms are presented; (3) compound nouns
to check the extent to which compounds are defined; (4)
irregular verbs, paying close attention to whether principal
parts are listed as separate cross-referenced entries,
whether haben/sein-auxiliary verbs are given, and how verb
types (transitive, intransitive, reflexive) are denoted; (5)
common and field-related abbreviations; and (6) proper
nouns and names. Ease in finding and understanding such
entries should be the deciding factor in your selection.

9. To test whether a standard dictionary makes it easy for you
to find and understand its entries, pay attention to the
following aspects:

10. 1. Clarity of physical presentation: Can you read the print? Are several print
types used to clarify different meanings of the same word? Does the
dictionary use colored lettering, boldface, italics, and a numbering system?
2. Clarity of definitions: Does the dictionary supply authentic examples of
modern usage in context? How are idioms listed? Are the translations
themselves idiomatic?
3. Focus: Has the foreign reader been taken into consideration? Are the
predicates and principal parts of irregular/strong verbs listed as main
entries? Does the dictionary provide a sufficient number of compound
nouns?
4. Special lists of entries: Do the lists assist you? Does the extra listing make
it easier for you to find the specialized information in the dictionary?

11. BEST PAPER DICTIONARIES
For American English, at least, you can't go wrong with
either of these:
Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary
American Heritage Collegiate Dictionary
For British English, I recommend:
Concise Oxford English Dictionary

12. ONLINE DICTIONARIES
The major argument for online dictionaries is that they are
don’t cost anything. Here, again, it’s advisable compare
entries above all for completeness, but also regarding
contemporary jargon, nouns, verbs, and compounds.
Note that students preparing for reading proficiency or
translation exams may not be permitted to use online tools
during the exam. In this case, it’s important not only to have
access to a paper dictionary, but also to practice using i

13. BEST ONLINE DICTIONARY 2021
1. Collins Dictionary
Pros
- Boasts several modes to allow various searches that help
improve their grammar, vocabulary, and pronunciation.
- Features over 4.5 billion words
- Has both audio and video pronunciations
Cons
- It doesn’t feature urban words
- The translator mode doesn’t always give correct
translations

14. 2- Wiktionary
Pros
- The etymology feature permits users to see the origin of a
word
- It supports several languages
- The “anagrams” feature helps you to learn new terms by
rearranging letters in a word.
Cons
- Users question their credibility since users can edit
anything on the site

15. 3. Google Dictionary
Pros
- It supports several languages
- It carries the credibility and reliability of Google as a brand
- Boasts meanings of nearly every English word
Cons
- Word translations are not always correct
- There are concerns that it doesn’t feature old-school
English words

16. 4. Urban Dictionary
Pros
- It incorporates words that are often not found in standard
dictionaries
- It boasts new words from the streets or those that are
borrowed from the showbiz
Cons
- Doesn’t feature more formal words
- You sometimes have to do many searches without getting
desired results

17. 5. Oxford Dictionary
Pros
- one of the oldest, and most trusted online dictionary
- The wordfinder feature helps build vocabulary by helping
you learn more about related words.
- Boasts both American and British pronunciations
Cons
- There are claims of the dictionary having complex word
definitions and unclear explanations

18. 6. Macmillan Online Dictionary
Pros
- Every word defined in this dictionary links to a thesaurus
entry
- It defines words with commonly occurring English terms
- It features new words daily to help improve your grammar
Cons
- It has limited features when compared to other dictionaries

19. 7. Cambridge Online Dictionary
Pros
- The online version boasts idioms, American English,
learners, international, and phrasal verb dictionaries
- Pronunciations, synonyms, and translations features help
users enhance their vocabulary
- Supports several languages
Cons
- Boasts lots of information that might make it hard to get
desired results

20. 8. Dictionary.com
Pros
- It features a word directory that has been created in over
two decades
- It comes with outstanding features such as word games,
synonyms, slang phrases, audio pronunciation and more
- It provides word use cases in sentences, as well as includes
definitions for medical terms
Cons
- Its association with Ask.com is not going well with some
users

21. ELECTRONIC DICTIONARIES
Electronic dictionaries are less cumbersome than online
ones since they’re smaller, lighter, and don’t require web
access. An e-dictionary may be equal or even superior to the
paper version, provided that the e-version has an equally
comprehensive word list. Always test a variety of
dictionaries to ensure that you’re comfortable with the
clarity of presentation and definitions. Note, that good
electronic dictionaries can be much more expensive than
traditional paper dictionaries.

22. NEW WORDS ADDED TO DICTIONARY 2021
as we know every year there’s 1000 thousand words added to the
dictionary , here are some of the words that’ve been added to the
dictionary since January 2021
Long hauler : a person who experiences one or more long-term
effects following initial improvement or recovery from a serious
illness (such as COVID-19)
Pod and Bubble : a usually small group of people (such as family
members, friends, coworkers, or classmates) who regularly
interact closely with one another but with few or no others in
order to minimize exposure and reduce the transmission of
infection during an outbreak of a contagious disease.

23. Bubble also gained an additional meaning: an area within which sports teams
stay isolated from the general public during a series of scheduled games so as
to prevent exposure to disease and that includes accommodations, amenities,
and the location at which the games are held
Wet market : a market that sells perishable items (such as fresh meat and
produce) and sometimes live animals which are often slaughtered on-site

24. WORDS FROM ONLINE COMMUNICATION
Reaction GIF : a GIF of someone or something (such as a celebrity or
an animal) that is sent or posted in reply to something (such as a text
message or a social media post or comment) and that typically depicts
and expresses a reaction
Digital blackface : the use by white people of digital depictions of Black
or brown people or skin tones especially for the purpose of self-
representation or self-expression
Hard pass : a firm refusal or rejection of something (such as an offer)
Performative disapproving : made or done for show (as to bolster
one's own image or make a positive impression on others)
@ informal : to respond to, challenge, or disparage the claim or
opinion of (someone) —usually used in the phrase don't @ me
Flex informal : an act of bragging or showing off
Cancel culture : the practice or tendency of engaging in
mass canceling as a way of expressing disapproval and exerting
social pressure

25. WORDS FROM NEW WAYS OF WORKING
•
Makerspace : a communal public workshop in which makers
can work on small personal projects
•
Coworking : being, relating to, or working in a building where
multiple tenants (such as entrepreneurs, start-ups, or
nonprofits) rent working space (such as desks or offices) and
have the use of communal facilities
•
Crowdfunding : the practice of obtaining needed funding (as
for a new business) by soliciting contributions from a large
number of people especially from the online community
•
Gig worker : a person who works temporary jobs typically in
the service sector as an independent contractor or freelancer

26. WORDS FROM POLITICS AND THE JUSTICE
SYSTEM
•
Decarceration : release from imprisonment also : the
practice or policy of reducing the number of people
subject to imprisonment
•
Prison industrial complex : the profit-driven relationship
between the government, the private companies that
build, manage, supply, and service prisons, and related
groups (such as prison industry unions and lobbyists)
regarded as the cause of increased incarceration rates
especially of poor people and minorities and often for
nonviolent crimes

27. WORDS ABOUT IDENTITY
•
BIPOC (abbreviation) : Black, Indigenous, (and) People
of Color
•
Folx : folks —used especially to explicitly signal the
inclusion of groups commonly marginalized
•
Sapiosexual : of, relating to, or characterized by sexual
or romantic attraction to highly intelligent people
•
Silver fox : an attractive middle-aged man having mostly
gray or white hair

28. WORDS OF COMFORT
•
ASMR or autonomous sensory meridian response : a
pleasant tingling sensation that originates on the back of
the scalp and often spreads to the neck and upper spine,
that occurs in some people in response to a stimulus
(such as a particular kind of sound or movement), and
that tends to have a calming effect
•
Hygge : a cozy quality that makes a person feel content
and comfortable
•
Entheogen : a psychoactive, hallucinogenic substance or
preparation (such as psilocybin or ayahuasca) especially
when derived from plants or fungi and used in religious,
spiritual, or ritualistic contexts

29. WORD LOOKING TO THE FUTURE
• Second Gentleman : the husband or male partner of a
vice president or second in command of a country or
jurisdiction

30. REFERENCES
http://www.antimoon.com/how/dictionary.htm
http://www.columbia.edu/itc/german/korb/1113/client_edit/dictionary.html
https://www.merriam-webster.com/words-at-play/new-words-in-the-dictionary
https://www.computerhope.com/jargon/d/dictiona.htm
https://www.btb.termiumplus.gc.ca/tpv2guides/guides/wrtps/index-
eng.html?lang=eng&lettr=indx_catlog_p&page=96bousMx83Pw.html
https://english.stackexchange.com/questions/14425/what-is-the-best-paper-based-
dictionary
https://theconversation.com/how-technology-is-changing-language-and-the-way-we-
think-about-the-world-35856
https://rapidapi.com/blog/best-online-dictionaries/