Do I really need that dictionary?
I have a coupon for the bookstore down the street for 33% off any book. Since my very best Spanish dictionary is the $8 University of Chicago Spanish Dictionary, I thought now would be a good time to upgrade.
I always wanted Moe's suggested dictionary: The Collins Unabridged Spanish Dictionary. At $55, the 33% discount is a savings of almost $20.
Well I had it in my hand, but put it back. Would I really use it? Or would I go to the dictionary here at Spanishdict, and the ones at Reverso and WordRef long before I lugged out the big, thick book?
It's like the Verb book I got. Yes, I do use it, but it's not like I couldn't have had almost all the same information online. The Conjugator at SpanishDict.com is easier to use than my verb book.
So what do you guys think? Are books becoming irrelevant? Do I really need that dictionary?
11 Answers
Hmmm...good question.
One the one hand -- I bring out my big dictionary only when I don't like the definition given by the online dictionaries (the seem to contradict, they don't give examples, etc.).
On the other hand -- I just love books! I would definitely say "yes" to a big, unabridged dictionary if all I had was a small paperback one.
For carrying around, nothing beats my Franklin Electronic Dictionary. It has 5 million entries, and I think it's $40 on Amazon.
Forget dictionaries. Use that coupon to buy a student version of the new RAE set of books on Spanish grammar.
Or if you really want to appreciate the value of the coupon, buy the 3 volume set. As I understand it, for the price of the 3 books, you could chose between the books and an actual trip to Spain to learn the grammar.
I guess I'm a bit old fashioned, but there is just something about being able to actually thumb through a dictionary that just can't be approximated by simply typing a word into some dictionary search engine in order to retrieve what you are looking for.
Don't get me wrong, I love technology as much as the next guy and understand the convenience of having at-the-push-of-a-button definitions (The RAE and OED online are two of my favorite resources), but there is still some intangible difference between the two that makes me value having that chunk of paper and ink close at hand just waiting to be opened.
As far as what type of dictionary to buy, at your level of proficiency, I would recommend purchasing a decent Spanish-Spanish dictionary (that is, if you don't already have one). I have a Pequeño Larousse Ilustrado (cerca 1982) that I have found to be an invaluable tool to have near at hand (especially for times when I am not in front of the computer, such as when reading a book or watching a movie or television program in Spanish).
Of course this is just my own personal preference, and what it really comes down to is whether or not you expect to get enough use out of it to justify the cost of ownership. If so, then buy it, by all means, but if you think that it will likely just sit up on some shelf collecting dust only to be opened on rare occasions then it would probably be best to simply forgo the whole thing.
I use both my :Oxford Spanish Dictionary 3rd( edition) and a Navita translator at times which is a FREE language application on my mobile.
The great advantage of an actual dictionary is that it is always available - even if you should lose your internet connection. The most important advantage of an actual, tangible, bi-lingual Spanish (or other lingual) dictionary is that it is compiled by a large team of people with linguistic understanding/experience from both countries. This means in practice that the combined understanding of so many people reduces the probability of serious mistakes being made in the translation of idioms/ colloquial phrases and words having different meaning in South America from Spain.
Another book I have found to be an invaluable resource in studying/learning languages is 501 Spanish Verbs by Christopher Kendris which is part of Barron's Educational series (You can also buy French and Portuguese)
Outside of a dog, a book is man's best friend. Inside of a dog it's too dark to read. ~Groucho Marx
A book is the only place in which you can examine a fragile thought without breaking it, or explore an explosive idea without fear it will go off in your face. It is one of the few havens remaining where a man's mind can get both provocation and privacy. ~Edward P. Morgan
Books are the quietest and most constant of friends; they are the most accessible and wisest of counselors, and the most patient of teachers. ~Charles W. Eliot
Let books be your dining table, And you shall be full of delights Let them be your mattress And you shall sleep restful nights. ~Author Unknown
We should read to give our souls a chance to luxuriate. ~Henry Miller
..... what i mean to say is "i love books 
"
Lazarus would say: ¡Claro que sí!
He must have like a hundred dictionaries ;he once said in a post he could cover the floor of his house with them
But I must admit, I don't use them, I use online versions, it is faster and you get more examples.
Or buy 1,001 Spanish Verbs. It has a great reference in the beginning for the verb tenses. Something I still struggle with, seeing as I've never actually learned them.
Yes, Izanoni, I completely agree. While the online dictionary is great when you are at the computer, I still like to have a paper and ink dictionary. I keep one close by when I am watching a Spanish novela or movie so I can look up words I have never heard, or I bring one at my bedside, because I always go to bed with a book and I like to a have a dictionary close by to look up words. Sometimes, I just leaf through the dictionary and look up words at random for fun. I like to have the concrete stuff at hand.
I used my paper dictionaries a fair bit when I was working on serious translation. What I found, however, was that if I needed to resort to my paper dictionaries, just one good one wasn't enough. I had a couple of English Dictionaries, the full RAE, a couple of Spanish-English dictionaries , a technical Spanish-English dictionary, and a slang dictionary. I toyed with the idea of getting a specialized Legal dictionary, but in the end I didn't take that certification and didn't go down that path.
But for everyday use, I get by perfectly well with what's available online, and with the free dictionary aps available for my iPhone, such as RAE online and SpanishDict! And the English dictionary that comes with Macs is very good indeed!
Hmmm. I love paper books, but I find I use the online dictionaries most of all, and my electronic pocket dictionary when I'm away from the computer, and never use a paper dictionary anymore. I'd be hard pressed to pay a lot of money for an unabridged paper dictionary. Maybe if you can find a CD-ROM version of the Collins...
I say yes even though I use my iphone spanishdict application 90% of the time because it is anyplace, anytime, fast and fits in my pocket. However, a good hardbound dictionary with lots of use examples, grammar lessons, common expressions, etc. is very useful and adds variety. For me the more variety, the better in terms of accessing knowledge and learning. It also serves as point of comparison.
