I wish it came on CD-ROM with regular updates from the publishers.Ĭhamber's Twentieth Century Dictionary was first published in 1901, under the industrious editorship of Thomas Davidson. I hope this does not mean that it is reaching the end of its lifetime as I recently heard it was out of print. It is not easy to find it in some countries (which is why I had to order it at Amazon), and that is a real pity. There is no other lexicon which captures the wealth of the language around the world with such geographical impartiality. It is the official Scrabble dictionary for the UK, and if you play the game as I do, to improve your vocabulary, there's no other single volume reference like it. Chambers is probably the most comprehensive single volume dictionary around. I use many other popular dictionaries when I want to see if most people would understand my usage of a word but if I want to know about it myself, I use Chambers. I think that speaks volumes in itself that a simple dictionary might inspire such passion! I don't know if the definition of "rocks" in Chambers would render the correct sense to the title of this review as I have only just purchased my third copy of this dictionary, having given away my previous two to people who just fell in love with them. If you want a better one you'll need to start looking at multiple volume sets such as the "Shorter Oxford English Dictionary" (but _not_ the Webster's 3rd International which is severely dated in its definitions). Overall, if you need a dictionary with some muscle this is the one. These kinds of definitions will either attract or repel buyers depending on how you like your dictionaries. Éclair: a cake, long in shape but short in duration Middle-aged: between youth and old age, variously reckoned to suit the reckoner Mullet: a hairstyle that is short at the front, long at the back, and ridiculous all round
The one thing that makes Chambers stand out is its quirkiness. Someone who wants your typical Webster's "college dictionary" likely won't appreciate or need Chambers. If you're giving this as a gift, you'll likely want to keep that in mind. The Chambers dictionary, while useful to anyone wanting a large single volume with as many definitions as possible, is also perfect for smart college students on a budget with demanding academic loads, especially in English. Its nearest competitor (that I'm aware of) is the Concise Oxford Dictionary which is smaller and not nearly as well made with pages that feel as if they'll easily tear.
With more than 1800 pages, 300,000+ definitions, and a high quality construction, this is the dictionary to buy in the $25 to $40 price range. Chambers markets itself as the best single volume dictionary.
0 kommentar(er)
