Using Dictionaries in Translation (223 TRAJ) د. سلوى الحارثي أستاذ مساعد في قسم اللغة الإنجليزية والترجمة، كلية اللغات والترجمة

Types of Dictionaries in relation to: The form or medium The dictionary content The dictionary language

Types of Dictionaries in Relation to Form or Medium: 1. Books (paper dictionaries) 2. CD-ROMs 3. Internet or online dictionaries

Advantages: Disadvantages: Books (hard copies) Familiarity Ownership Large size Slow retrieval

2. CD-ROMs: You can buy dictionaries on CD-ROM. Advantages: Fast retrieval Lots of information Light-weight Small size Some contain pronunciation files (e.g. The Longman Interactive CD-ROM Dictionary) Some contain English learning materials (e.g. The Longman Interactive CD-ROM Dictionary) Some contain lots of pictures (e.g. The Longman Interactive CD-ROM Dictionary) Disadvantages: Computer needed Slower retrieval process if users are computer dummies Some are not well-designed

3. Internet or online dictionaries: are accessible via the Internet through a web browser. Advantages: Free Wild-card searching (this feature helps you perform a search on those occasions when you are not sure about the exact spelling of a word) Disadvantages: Computer needed Internet connection needed Slow internet speed Free ones often have advertising

Types of Dictionaries in Relation to the Dictionary Content 1. General Dictionaries: These dictionaries give you information about the most common words in a language. However, new words are often not included in these dictionaries until they become very common. Therefore, you should look for new fashionable words and new technical words (especially computer terms) in a technical dictionary.

2. Specialized Dictionaries These dictionaries focus on a specific subject area. This type of dictionary is also called a technical dictionary: Useful for special groups of people, (e.g.: Advanced Learner's dictionaries, college students, children, etc.) Useful for special fields or professions (e.g.: medical, chemical, physical, literary, linguistic, computer dictionaries, etc. ) Concentrating on one part of language, (e.g.: dictionaries of idioms, phrasal verbs, collocations, abbreviations, etc.) Translating between different varieties of a single language, (e.g.: British-American dictionaries).

Having a special organization. (e. g Having a special organization. (e.g. thesauri, a thesaurus is a book that organises words by categories and concepts, so synonyms and near-synonyms will be grouped together. Also, glossaries which are alphabetical lists of words or phrases used in a particular field with their definitions. Glossaries are often found at the back of a specialist or academic book as an appendix to the text.

Types of Dictionaries in Relation to the number of languages used: 1. Monolingual dictionaries: use the same language for the words and their definitions. 2. Bilingual dictionaries: give words in two languages with translations into the other language. 3. Multilingual dictionaries: each entry has translations of words in two or more languages.