Dictionary Reviews

This useful book is the best I could find on the Spanish language written in English. It has 685 pages and was written by a member of the Royal Spanish Academy and Director of the Carlos V Department at the University of Gent, Belgium and Director of the Institute of Hispanic Studies at the University of Antwerp. If you are put off by the price, consider that you would probably spend the same amount on other books that are not as comprehensive as this book is. This work shows a wide range of usage. Covers the usage of the verbs ser/estar which are difficult for the English learners of Spanish and the verb 'to become', the correct use of por and para, and has a good section on suffixes. I highly reccomend this book.

Though this thick grammar is a translation of a Dutch work, it is the best thing I could find on Spanish. The length may put off those who are only casually interested in the language, but others will appreciate getting such minor questions as how to say numbers ( 'mil quinientos' and never 'quince cientos' ) answered. The book is linguistically sound, and sentences from novels and newspapers are used as evidence to support the grammatical rules. Conversely, the book does not waste space. The treatment of irregular verbs uses easily learned patterns rather than a brute listing of forms.

This wonderful book in an excellent dictionary of religious words and phrases. In a remarkably short space, it defines the terms in a concise and highly informative way, often explaining how different groups differ on them. I have found that every word that I have been interested in is indeed covered in this book. I highly recommend this resource!

As a religious studies professor to undergraduate students, Irving Hexham understands the sense of bewilderment that can accompany any study of the world's religions. In this concise and helpful volume, he gives us short insights into an amazing array of topics: western religions, eastern religions, new religious movements, personalities, sacred texts, religious ideas and much more. If you seek depth, this is not the book for you. But it is extremely useful if you need short descriptions to help you become oriented in topics you encounter while studying or reading. I use it often to determine if a subject is something that I wish to pursue further in more detailed texts.

I was not aware that the book was out of print. It is a very unfortunate situation for those seeking a general reference on Islam. None of the 27 English-language texts we have on the subject even approach the breadth and presentation of this encyclopedia. I should hope that it will either be reprinted or released in a new edition. I do not easily give 10s in my reviews but this book certainly deserves it.

For those fascinated with religion in general and Islam in particular, Cyril Glasse's book is a treasure. I purchased my copy in 1991. I would pour over the work for hours, letting one entry guide me to others, often forgetting what I had originally sought to investigate. It is, indeed, a popular, one-volume dictionary written in an accessible prose style. The entries are brief and to the point, providing enough information to answer an immediate question about the religion, but also enough to encite further investigation of the topic in a larger work. The print is easy to read. All topics related to Islam are covered, including not only Sunni and Shiite Islam, but also the various sects that have evolved from Islam, such as the Bahais and the Druze. Theology, mysticism, folk belief, law, history, art as each pertains to Islam are fully covered. In many entries, Glasse compares Islamic belief and worship with those of Judaism and Christianity. Glasse's work covers all geographic areas of Islam, too, not just the Arabian heartland. The Encyclopedia lists entries according to Arabic tranliteration, but also lists reference entries in anglisized spellings. Some beautiful photographs illustrate the work and the appendix contains a graphic timeline of the development of Islam. I can not say enough about the value of the Concise Encyclopedia of Islam; I've learned more from it than from most narrative accounts of Islam. When, a year or so ago, I lost my copy during a move, I was deeply saddened to find that HarperCollins has chosen not to reprint the title. I understand the title is not technically out of print, but it is nonetheless unavailable. This review, then, is a plea for HarperCollins to reissue the Encyclopedia in the near future. The energy and committment that Glasse must have given to his research and its worthy results should not remain unavailable.

Akademiai Kiado is the top publisher in Hungary, and they've staked their investment wisely. Your other options are few, but you'll discover yourself well-pleased after digging deep into this dictionary.

As a beginning student of Hungarian, I have found most dictionaries for Eng-Hun disappointing. Clunky, or using old ways of phrasing, they get in the way of learning the language. A native speaker might determine the differences, but as someone just beyond "szia" and "jo reggelt," I need to have confidence in what I'm using is the best.

Definitions here are short, and usually only the main meaning is listed. The term is bold-faced, and the meaning is in plain text. All is clear and easy to read. Their typographer kept the design simple. The directions and contents--even the introduction--are in both English and Hungarian.

Laszlo Orszagh and Tamas Magay are the main names you'll see in better Eng-Hun books. This dictionary displays the strength of their books. Unfortunately, Orszagh passed away in 1984. He left a solid team to finish the job, and they completed their task as intended.

The Hungarian language is a behemoth to we English speakers, but this dictionary helps clarify the morass of prefixes and suffixes which help define this very old language.

I fully recommend "A Concise English-Hungarian Dictionary."

Anthony Trendl

The Országh László dictionaries are hands down the best. You could practically acquire a reading and writing knowledge of the language just from these dictionaries, because the example sentences and idiomatic constructions are so rich. There is also an appendix with a thorough investigation of all the suffixes (or case endings) used in Hungarian, which is enormously helpful for the beginning learner. Get the concise version (Kéziszótár) which comes in 1 volume H-E, one volume E-H and then graduate to Országh's Comprehensive (Nagyszótár) which is 2 volumes each way--not as handy for quick reference, but VERY, VERY thorough.

This was a required book for my theology school class on the history of Christian thought seven years ago, and it has been one of my most well-used reference books ever since. I'm now a doctoral student in religion, and I keep this book next to my desk, with my Webster's dictionary, my Bible, and my "Shambhala Dictionary of Buddhism and Zen." I almost always find what I'm looking for in this book, and the entries are clear and helpful, neither too short nor too long.

While I occasionally covet the un-concise version of this dictionary and may ask Santa for it some Christmas, I wonder if I'd actually use the hefty hardback as much as I use this handy, concise paperback.

The Concise Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church is a readable, organized and comprehensive volume of 570 pages. It covers most topics needed for research from Aaron to Zwingli. There is also a list, in chronological order, of popes and antipopes; up to and including John Paul II. I have found the book to be especially useful in researching complicated topics such as the early councils and reformers of the late Middle Ages. Written in the usual high standard of the Oxford series, I have yet to find a topic that I was looking for not covered. Feasts, theologians,Biblical books and lives of the saints are among the five thousand topics covered. If you need to know the difference between "Urbs Beata Hierusalem" and "Urbs Sion Aurea", this is the book.

I returned the Oxford English Reference Dictionary, and the Oxford Dictionary of English. Both are excellent reference books selling for the same price. The former has a noteworthy appendices. The latter is the most descriptive English dictionary (without an appendices) behind Oxford's world class 20 volume Dictionary of English.

The Concise Oxford English Dictionary Thumb Index Edition was half the price and weight. This less expensive version contained the words EEPROM, i-Mode, and off-gas. The Oxford Dictionary of English did not have the first two words. The Oxford English Reference Dictionary did not list the three words.

I needed a dictionary that would be no-nonsense, current on common words, and under $45CAN. With Chapter's September 2003 $10 discount coupon for purcases over $30, this was the dictionary to buy. And since I am Canadian residing in Canada, this dictionary contains the British spelling of words used in Canada.

The Random House-Webster English Dictionary rivalled the Oxford Dictionary of English and was the only dictionary sold at Chapter's to have the word lauan. Unfortunately, the Random House-Webster is an American style dictionary which normally would not be used in Canada.

This is a great dictionary for the intermediate literate. The definitions give precise senses the word is used; Each sense being exact and distinct of the rest. In other words, it's definitions are not simply reworded to many definitions. I would suggest this dictionary in assimilating the full concept of the word.

A Concise Pahlavi Dictionary is a very good and very helpful Book for who study Pahlavi Language and other Irania Languages.

This book is a reference dictionery book.

This is another book to add to your personal library if you are the type of person who has ever had to find that special word that says it all.

First off I think Roget's Thesaurus is the best book ever written. I use various versions constantly.

Roget's International Thesaurus, with its index in the back for locating words, is for me as a crossword addict and professional writer the most helpful thesaurus.

The other versions have alphabetized entries like a dictionary and give you far fewer words from which to choose.

My old edition is so worn out the cover has fallen off. My only criticism is that I wish it would be printed in hardback.

Can't find it, this is the place. Improved my solve rates by two-fold, no kidding. Very well organized! It has sections that cover foriegn languages, missing word clues, and much more. There was even a section about occupations. Everything you need to solve those tough puzzles is right here. Puts all other puzzle books to shame. Don't look any further, get this book!

A must have for puzzlers everywhere! The biggest on the block, this one has everything. Variant spellings, missing word clues, special catagories like occupations, foreign languages, etc. Don't get stuck, get this book.

I use this book in a beginning level English class for Hispanics. I work all day at a computer-related job and volunteer teach ESL two nights a week. I really do not have enough time to think of new conversation starters all the time. I find that this book used in conjunction with other material is ideal for low level adults. It provides a non threatening, informative introduction into American life. It is a fun way to learn the basics.

i'm domenico from italy,i want to learn english and this book is very interesting for me. thank you