2.4. Electronic Dictionaries

2.4. Electronic dictionaries

 The goal this time is to learn more about online, electronic dictionaries in general. Also, you are going to work with and evaluate online dictionaries. You are going to compare paper-based and electronic dictionaries. You are going to complete some exercises. 2.4.1. Lead-in

Check your browser's bookmarks toolbar, which gives you quick access to frequently used websites. Do you have a bookmark for any online dictionaries? Have you been using them on a regular basis? Check their URL and list them. - - - - -

What have you used them for? / List your experiences. - - - -

In case you have not used any, browse the Internet to find 3 you would like to work with. 1. 2. 3.

Check your mobile phone or tablet. Have you got a dictionary app? Check and name the software. - - - -

Why have you installed the dictionary applications on the mobile device? What have you used them for? List your experiences. - - - -

We are going to work with online electronic dictionaries. Choose one you prefer, OR work with the ones named.

 Reminder - Sites might use cookies to improve your browsing experience. For more information you must see their privacy policy, e.g. the privacy policy of the Online Collins Dictionary. 1 2.4.2. Exercise 1  Read the following paragraph and prepare to answer the questions. Also, check the meaning of 6 words. 3 have been chosen for you. Choose 3 more. Why was it strange to see a young girl’s face on the Spectator’s cover? What could tempt lots of potential readers to buy the issue? Did the writer of the article approve of Kate Middleton back in 2006?

 Elusive Kate steps into spotlight Sunday December 31, 2006 - The Observer

The Spectator is a venerable magazine with a venerable readership. In any given week subscribers might reasonably expect a dissection of Middle East politics, a conservative polemic about Europe or a nostalgic lament for Thatcher. What few people will have been prepared for was last week's front cover showing a fresh-faced 24-year-old named Kate Middleton. The headline shed light on her significance: 'The next People's Princess.' Kate is the girlfriend of Prince William and, according to a growing chorus, a racing certainty to be his wife. Which means that, barring accidents, she will be one day be Queen. The distant rumble of attention and speculation is about to become a thunderous stampede. The Spectator cover trailed an essay by Patrick Jephson, former secretary to Princess Diana, arguing that Kate's youth and glamour will provide a much-needed boost to 'Brand Windsor'. The latest issue of Tatler magazine boasts on its cover: 'Twenty-five things you didn't know about Kate Middleton.' Most people would struggle to tell you 25 things they did know about Kate Middleton. According to Tatler her middle name is Elizabeth, she likes to blow-dry her hair, she drinks Jack Daniel's and she enjoyed netball at school. Yet, even with those facts to hand, Kate remains elusive. Some portrayals cast her as a 'sensible' middle-class graduate who embodies meritocratic Britain; others as the socially aspiring millionaires' daughter who wouldn't be seen dead beyond the King's Road. Some describe a wholesome English rose; others claim she set her cap at William before university. Discretion has proved Kate's most potent weapon. Jephson says: 'We know very little about her and probably never will, providing they do their job right. Historically a degree of mystery about royalty has been an advantage; we project on to then what we want.' Read the rest of the article on the Guardian’s website.

Look up the meaning(s) of the words in two online monolingual English dictionaries.

1. elusive 1. 2. 2. meritocratic 1. 2. 3. polemic 1. 2. 4. 1. 2. 5. 1. 2.

2 6. 1. 2.

Why is it very different to work with an online electronic dictionary? List your experiences. What are the benefits and the drawbacks?

2.4.3. Exercise 2  Work in pair. Match these idioms with their meanings.

1. take your breath 2. a breath of fresh air 3. keep an eye on 4. keep your eye on sb 5. play sth by ear 6. sb’s ears are burning 7. sb’s face fits 8. save face a. used for saying that someone is the right type of person for something b. to look after someone or something c. to deal with a situation without having a plan, by reacting to things as they happen d. to avoid being embarrassed or losing people’s respect e. to be watching someone carefully, especially because you think they are going to do something wrong f. someone or something that is new, interesting, and exciting g. to be extremely impressive or beautiful h. used for saying that people are talking about someone Source: A series of Dictionary Skills Worksheets by Tim Bowen

 Student A - Check your answers in the online Macmillan English Dictionary. Student B - Check your answers in the online LONGMAN Dictionary of Contemporary English.

 Study and describe the microstructure, the entries’ internal structure.

Student A Student B Macmillan English Dictionary for Advanced LONGMAN Dictionary of Learners Contemporary English pronunciation, stress pattern

meanings, frequency information

3 examples

grammatical information

cross-reference

synonyms and antonyms

frequency information

style information

Which dictionary do you prefer? Why? Have you recognised any other possible benefit of online electronic dictionaries?

 As for evaluation, you must be very careful with online sources. Read through the next list of criteria taken from the Dalhousie University’s website and highlight the gist, so that you can summarize how you can grow critical of online dictionaries, too.

 6 Criteria for Websites These six criteria deal with the content of Web sites rather than the graphics or site design. Apply these criteria when you research on the internet. 1. AUTHORITY Authority reveals that the person, institution or agency responsible for a site has the qualifications and knowledge to do so. Evaluating a web site for authority:  Authorship: It should be clear who developed the site.  Contact information should be clearly provided: e-mail address, snail mail address, phone number, and fax number.  Credentials: the author should state qualifications, credentials, or personal background that gives them authority to present information.  Check to see if the site supported by an organization or a commercial body 2. PURPOSE The purpose of the information presented in the site should be clear. Some sites are meant to inform, persuade, state an opinion, entertain, or parody something or someone. Evaluating a web site for purpose:  Does the content support the purpose of the site?

4  Is the information geared to a specific audience (students, scholars, general reader)?  Is the site organized and focused?  Are the outside links appropriate for the site?  Does the site evaluate the links?  Check the domain of the site. The URL may indicate its purpose. 3. COVERAGE It is difficult to assess the extent of coverage since depth in a site, through the use of links, can be infinite. One author may claim comprehensive coverage of a topic while another may cover just one aspect of a topic. Evaluating a web site for coverage:  Does the site claim to be selective or comprehensive?  Are the topics explored in depth?  Compare the value of the site’s information compared to other similar sites.  Do the links go to outside sites rather than its own?  Does the site provide information with no relevant outside links? 4. CURRENCY Currency of the site refers to: 1) how current the information presented is, and 2) how often the site is updated or maintained. It is important to know when a site was created, when it was last updated, and if all of the links are current. Evaluating a web site for currency involves finding the date information was:  first written  placed on the web  last revised Then ask if:  Links are up-to-date  Links provided should be reliable. Dead links or references to sites that have moved are not useful.  Information provided so trend related that its usefulness is limited to a certain time period?  the site been under construction for some time? 5. OBJECTIVITY Objectivity of the site should be clear. Beware of sites that contain bias or do not admit its bias freely. Objective sites present information with a minimum of bias. Evaluating a web site for objectivity:  Is the information presented with a particular bias?  Does the information try to sway the audience?  Does site advertising conflict with the content?  Is the site trying to explain, inform, persuade, or sell something? 6. ACCURACY There are few standards to verify the accuracy of information on the web. It is the responsibility of the reader to assess the information presented. Evaluating a web site for accuracy:  Reliability: Is the author affiliated with a known, respectable institution?  References: do statistics and other factual information receive proper references as to their origin?  Does the reading you have already done on the subject make the information seem accurate?  Is the information comparable to other sites on the same topic?  Does the text follow basic rules of grammar, spelling and composition?  Is a bibliography or reference list included?

(n.d.) 6 Criteria for Websites. Dalhousie University: Halifax, Nova Scotia. Retrieved from

5 http://libraries.dal.ca/using_the_library/evaluating_web_resources/6_criteria_for_websites.html on 10 November 2014.

 Now visit the online Collins dictionary, examine and evaluate it on the basis of the previous list of criteria. Who developed the site? Is the site organized and focused? Compare the value of the site’s information compared to other similar sites. When was it last updated? Does site advertising conflict with the content? Is the author affiliated with a known, respectable institution?

2.4.4. Exercise 3  Complete the following vocabulary quiz taken from the online Macmillan Dictionary:

 As you could see in the previous activity, electronic dictionaries can offer you some special features. Check the following links, study and describe them in terms of their purpose, content, structure and range. Evaluate each site/link in terms of the criteria listed in 2.1.3. Exercise 2. Highlight three of the most relevant or special features.

Online Macmillan Dictionary - Buzzwords 1 2 3

LONGMAN Online Dictionary of Contemporary English – Food topic 1 2 3 The Free Dictionary Homepage 1 2 3 Urban Dictionary 1 2 3 Merriam-Webster Online Visual Dictionary – structure of a house 1 2 3

6 Online Macmillan Dictionary – Open Dictionary 1 2 3

This is only a selection of some online dictionaries. Can you add any other that you would recommend in the light of this discussion? What other special features can you benefit from? Browse the Internet to find a minimum of two more.

 I suppose you know SZTAKI, the online bilingual dictionary. Have use ever used it? Why/Why not? What have you experienced?

Visit the website and browse it. Evaluate it along the criteria you worked with in 2.4.3. Exercise 2.

authority purpose coverage currency objectivity accuracy

Can you describe its advantages and drawbacks? Why would you/wouldn’t you recommend it?

 Have you ever used Google Translator? Why? Why not?