outstanding dictionary of "americanized" english
595004
This is an outstanding dictionary of American English.  At 2,000 pages and over 350,000 definitions, the reader usually finds the answer to questions.  The text size in some dictionaries is too small but it is large and bold enough to clearly see the succinct definitions, examples, word type.  A few photos are provided that kept my interest.  By purchasing this book, I was offered a 6 month access to the Oxford Dictionary web site.  I spent about an hour playing on its pages.  I fantasized that I'd obtain access to a digital form of the 20 volume philological history of words and meanings, but that was just my hope.  This is an excellent dictionary for adults and some high school students.  I think that a dictionary, periodically updated, is something we all ought to have.  There are lots of products that focus on lanaguge, english-american, slang, politics, etc.  I give this a solid "A".
251163
This is the dictionary for someone who wants to memorize every word in it, as It is not too big and it is not too small, containing the core American English vocabulary. It is a must for someone who wants to take the GRE exam. Unlike the Merriam and Webster's Dictionary and Thesaurus (which I also have), the fonts are cool with syllabic dots which make pronounce each word easily. Only if that the hardcover ones can be made from thinner dictionary papers (or the Bible papers) which can make the dictionary thinner. Oh, actually I own the second edition which has more words in it than the third edition.
1133258
This pocket dictionary really will fit in your pocket!  It has a flexible plastic cover which should wipe off easily if need be.  It also has blue headwords.  It appears to be as comprehensive as one would expect for this size.  It includes both American and British usage (the American usage is indicated by Am).  The introduction and guide to pronunciation are in both languages.  There are also 31 pages at the back with information for travelers (in both English and Danish):  basic (travel) phrases, abbreviations, a mini-grammar with irregular verbs, numerals, how to tell time, and metric conversions including a thermometer showing both Fahrenheit and Centrigrade/Celcius.
2137560
I enjoy and use dictionaries on at least a weekly basis. The "American Heritage" has been my favorite since purchasing an abridged paperback around 15 years ago. This fifth edition of their hardback has over 4,000 color images, thousands of newly added words and senses. The  paper its self is very good quality. All of this equals help with my poor spelling skills, information extraordinaire and simple pleasure in a well done dictionary.
4471035
This book is packed with valuable and interesting information. The Australian-American dictionary is also valuable and humorous. I ran many of the terms by a few Australian friends, and they confirmed they use the terms all the time (terms that most Americans would NOT understand). All in all, this is a terrific book and well worth the price for anyone that's traveling to or moving to Australia.
953996
Wiley's English-Spanish Spanish-English Chemistry Dictionary is a practical English/Spanish translation dictionary of chemistry related terms and is a very impressive hardbound book with excellent quality pages. My daughter is conversationally fluent in Spanish (she has a flair for language that I never had) and a recent Bio-Medical Engineering graduate.

While most of the contents are out of my area of expertise (I was an Electronics Engineer), my daughter was quite impressed with the inclusiveness and organization of the entries. This is not going to be a book she uses everyday, but it is a handy reference to have on hand.

Highly Recommended!

CFH
2116157
i think the title says it all -- the examples of word usage are plentiful and up to date and these make this dictionary stand out from the others.
456555
Le Petit Larousse Illustre is a great French dictionary for any serious student or admirer of the French language and/or French culture.  This is a French/French dictionary so it is not for someone who is searching for a good English/French dictionary.  However, for the serious francophile whose interest goes beyond a general definition of a word in French, this dictionary is invaluable---it will give you the precise nuances of the word in question, not just a vague definition.  I would say the only fault I can find with this dictionary is that it does not give pronunciations of the words themselves---so it presupposes that you already know how the word would be pronounced, which, for a non-native speaker, is not always the case.  The dictionary also contains many pictures, maps, drawings, and a whole section in the second half of the book dedicated to famous people, like an encyclopedia of inventors, heads of state, mythological heros, writers, etc.  I can (and do) spend hours pawing through this gem of a book---I love it and I would recommend it to anyone who loves French and French culture.
18952
The absolutely best thing about this dictionary is the clarity of its definitions...there is seldom, if ever, a need to look up another word in order to understand the original definition.  The next best thing is its encyclopedic qualities...names and places also at your fingertips.  I wish the binding boards and cloth were as durable as the first edition.  I have never minded bringing out this unabridged dictionary just to look up one word because it has never let me down, even with a Scrabble challenge.  Too bad it has been allowed to go out of print.  I will add that Bowker rated this dictionary highly in their Buying Guide to General Reference Books for Adults.
1275186
Online two-way dictionaries, glosses in readers have nothing on this marvellous book. My friends and I, hacking (far too accurate description, I'm afraid. Quirk's Old English Grammar helped that in time) through lfred's laws for the first time for our class Old English and Its Closest Relatives, found that this was by far the most valuable resource we had, even when translating other dialects. Sure, it only has OE -> NE, but with even a little college-level knowledge of grammar, there is nothing in this book that's not either understandable or easily revealed.

My only complaint, and since I'm still no OE master, this may just be my ignorance, is that both words beginning in thorn and words beginning in eth are filed underneath eth, and so written with it.
826390
Indeed great Polish-English Jan Stanislawski's Dictionary. Some meanings and words are either no longer used much, but great source of information, much more than the smaller or pocket size ones. I feel very lucky and privilaged to be able to buy it for a symbolic amount of 1$ as someone donated it by selling via Amazon. Thank you, thank you donnor!
2045033
This is a fabulous dictionary and has been absolutely invaluable to me as an adult student of French.  But I cannot imagine using a dead-tree version.  It is available both on CD ROM (which fully installs on a hard drive) as well as online by subscription.

The really great thing for me about using an electronic edition of this dictionary has been the search ability.  You can search both within entries (which can be several pages long) and globally, throughout the entire dictionary.  You can search for single words or for phrases.  Not only do searches enable the Anglophone student to unscramble difficult usages that he encounters in French text, but they enable the student to find a way to express something in polished French that he might otherwise render in awkward, Anglicized wording.  This dictionary just has a vast number of usage examples, but the example that is needed often could simply not be found without electronic searches.

The era of dead-tree dictionaries is so over.
4025965
"Robert Hartwell Fiske's Dictionary of Unendurable English" is such an achievement I'll have difficulty being brief. Campaigning to keep English viable and elegant, Fiske combats the sloppy and the non-standard. His book recounts careless sources that deteriorate our language; those that support and even encourage poor usage. As I get older and my own grammar and spelling stumble, reading the public mistakes listed here certainly comfort and amuse. Fiske has gleaned these risible atrocities from sources often considered unassailable.
Was the dictionary once your unimpeachable source? Did you know the OED now includes LOL and the "I heart you" symbol? Is this English? Are they necessary? How long will they need to be listed? Read Fiske's opinion and rating of our contemporary dictionaries.
Some years ago my dear old mom went into a tizzy when it was announced by some lofty source that the infinitive could be split ("to boldly go" as Star Trek would lamentably state). If you like she, value our unique, rich language and hope to sustain English eloquent, liberate yourself from the slang bullies, the betrayal of dictionaries, the coinage of the ghastly and read this book!
1948353
This gave me lots of information I've been looking for. The author is presenting the full details of a systematic way to describe the sounds of American English. Along the way, he covers many advanced topics. Not for the phonological newcomer, there is a wealth of detail here and the low-level things are simply not covered.
1691368
This book is actually a fairly exhaustive Thesaurus. It is 663 pages of common, specialized, and even slang words that have been defined, cross referenced, and alphabetized. The entries also consist of the type of word (i.e. verb, noun, etc.), notable quotations of uses, and what this book calls "reverse dictionary," which lists the words by their definition first, incase you know what it is and not what it is called (as the back cover totes). The entries gives the reader both synonyms and antonyms. There is also an introduction that helps the reader to understand how the book is organized and how to most effectively use this reference work. This book has been a big help in my school research. I highly recommend it.
282346
I've used 6 or 7 print Japanese dicionariers and 2 software Japanese dictionaries, and this dictionary is by far the most usefull that I have yet to find.

It contains ample example sentences. It gives the verb type as RU, U or Irregular which is my favorite way of learning verbs. It gives the stem-form(pre masu form), the stem that -nai is added to for the negative present tense, and the TE form most of the time.

The enteries in the Japanese-English section consist of the word in roomaji, followed kana, and then followed by kanji (if it exists or is ever used for the word.)

There is a short grammar revies in the middle of the dictionary as well as a list of Japanese Political Parties and more.

I recomend looking words found in the English-Japanese section up in the Japanese-English section for more information - particularly verb conjugations.

In my opinion, the only other dictionary needed with this one for beginners to intermediate students, an equally ecconomical one, is "The Learners Kanji Dictionary" - if the student wishes to read/write Japanese.

Most kanji show up good in the print.

The only cavets that I have with this dictionary, and they are miniscule at that, are:
1. The roomaji is different. Like the way I just wrote roomaji (without the single o with the macron for the long "o" vowel sound. For some reason they put the macron on the "'n". - None of this is that bothersome though it only took me a few minutes to get used to it.
2. Second person pronouns, particularly "anata" and "anatatachi" which when used sometimes sound snide, rude, or makes the speaker sound more foreign - are not noted in the dictionary as such. These are used in Japanese speach occasionaly though. This information is found in many Japanese textbooks so it also does not present any problem.

I realy love this dictionary and own two copies, and in my opinion it is a great dictionary for a begginer to an intermediate student.
2543816
There are few things I know enough about to justify speaking about them definitively. Learning foreign languages, in fact, is pretty much the only one. Japanese is the fourth non-native tongue I am trying to stuff under my belt so I've been through all the dictionary shopping before. And, I can say, without a doubt, that this is a miracle book. A bible for Japanese learner, it makes looking up characters remarkably easy and quick. I have never spent more than 90 seconds flipping through this mammoth tome before finding what I am looking for. In addition to an intensely comprehensive selection of kanji listed by stroke order, this dictionary also lists by frequency, by radical, by joyo/non-joyo/names AND by on/kun. I was unfortunately not intelligent enough to have purchased this book at this site, so I paid the full $$ for it. Three years later, I can say with 100% that it was well worth the investment. Jack Halpern is a genius for coming up with the SKIP method. If you're serious about becoming fluent in Japanese, buy this dictionary and the Random House English/Japanese dictionary. Both are fantastic investments.