Today we are dealing with the question of dictionaries. But not the traditional ones, paper-printed, instead, we are going to deal with online dictionaries. They are considered as excellent tools for students and for anybody looking for the meaning or translation of any word or expression. There are many online dictionaries but we are going to consider only 4 of them:
You can go through the links above and see how they work. I surfed all of them and looked at the same word in the four dictionaries and I found different ways of showing the meanings in the four dictionaries. The two first ones are monolingual. They develop the entries with the definition, the word used in sentencies and synonyms. Moreover, you can find the word meaning in diferent fields (medical, music, engineering, and so on), also its origin or even rhymes! And, at the end, some links through which you can jump to other online dictionaries to look for the word in question. In the Webster Dictionary, you have even a survey from the editors whith a question: " Why are you interested in this word?. Leave a comment". They are both very complete dictionaries. The third one is a translator from English to Spanish. It is also very complete becauseit goes explaining all the possible uses of the word in different contexts and the translation to Spanish. This one is better for the students who begin with English, whereas the previous two are more comfortable for natives, teachers or very advanced English students. Finally, the 4th. dictionary is more concise. Everything is seen at a glance. This is also apropiated for students of secondary education. Its monolingual character will improve students proficiency in English.
Personally speaking, as you know, I had got my degree in English Philology many years ago. When I studied, online dictionaries may be existed, but they were not so much used as they are today. I find them fantastic. Everything is quicker. However, I have always used paper-printed dictionaries and I like them as well. I still have at home a "COLLINS-COBUILD" monolingual (and very big), a bilingual LAROUSE, and another monoligual, the OXFORD ADVANCED LEARNER'S DICTIONARY, and many others, litler than this three just mentioned (bilingual Collins pocket, BUSSINES ENGLISH, PHRASAL VERBS DICTIONARY...). I use all of them and I feel good doing so. Maybe I got accostumed to the traditional searching and that is the reason why I think of my old dictionaries to use better than the online versions. However, I consider myself a modern person, able to adapt to the new times and I promise I will use online dictionaries as well as the traditional ones. If I had to choose one, I could not do so. Concerning the 4 dictionaries I have seen I prefer the first one (Oxford) and the last one (learners). The way the develop meaning seems to me more confortable than the Webster and the Wordreference.
And this is all about this topic. I hope you have found it interesting.
I shall see you soon.
DELIA MARIA CASCALES MARCO.
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