CONTENIDO

. - Introduction

1. - The use of Dictionaries in classroom

1.1 Dictionary definition and its uses
1.2 Dictionary use and reading comprehension
1.3 Dictionary use and vocabulary learning

2. - Types of dictionaries
2.1 Most commonly used dictionaries

. - Conclusion

. - Bibliography

. - Sources
 INTRODUCTION

The following investigation has the purpose of making known the definition of
dictionary, types of dictionaries, and mostly important the use of dictionaries in
classroom. A dictionary is a very important tool for anyone who is learning a new
language.

A dictionary is among the first things a foreign language learner purchases and
most language teachers believe that dictionaries can assist the learning of
vocabulary. Dictionaries give information on word derivation, meaning, spelling
and pronunciation. A good dictionary carries additional information about grammar
and usage, synonyms and derivations, as well as distinctions between spoken and
written English.

However, many educators and researchers discourage the use of dictionaries. An

example of this is Honeyfield (1977), who is skeptical of the value of dictionaries.
He says that trying to learn a new word by looking it up in a dictionary is a form of
rote learning, and that it may be more beneficial for learners to refrain from using
dictionaries and be forced to infer word meanings from context.

On the other hand, there are opinions in which the use of the dictionary is
beneficial since it is evident that the dictionary can be an extremely useful learning
resource, especially as it makes the learner more independent of the teacher. If
the students learn how to use a dictionary effectively, then the dictionary can be a
very helpful resource for their studies. Training in the proper use of a dictionary will
be of help in selecting the meaning that is appropriate to a given context.
 THE USE OF DICTIONARIES IN CLASSROOM

Dictionary definition and its uses

A dictionary is a reference book containing the words of a language

usually alphabetically arranged, with information on their forms, pronunciations,
functions, meanings, etymologies, spellings and idiomatic uses. Most of this
information cannot be found in other reference books. It is important to consider
several advantages in the use of dictionaries. In the very early stages of learning,
even an inadequate bilingual dictionary can provide an important support and be a
quick reference book.

In language learning/teaching process the importance of using dictionaries

cannot be denied. It is obvious that the dictionary can be an extremely useful
learning resource, especially as it makes the learner more independent of the
teacher. If the students learn how to use a dictionary effectively, then the
dictionary can be a very helpful resource for their studies. Training in the proper
use of a dictionary will be of help in selecting the meaning that is appropriate to a
given context. The most important basic skill in using a dictionary is to fınd a word
or expression one has in mind. Then, one has to fınd out the meaning of the word,
however, there is a problem of choosing of appropriate meaning to the given
context when several meanings are defined.

For instance, we can identify many senses of the word "see" by means of
a dictionary exploitation:
1) I can't see Lydia anywhere. (Perceive with the eye)
2) The security guard asked to see our passes. (Inspect)
3) Can you ~ what I mean? (Understand)
 4) We are going to see a film tonight. (Be a spectator at)
5) I could see that you were having an argument with him. (Perceive with
the eye)
6) I'd like to see the manager please. I have a complaint. (Have a meeting
with).

When the above dictionary defınitions and example sentences are

examined, it is seen that each sentence can be interpreted differently because of
the contextual clues and different dictionary defınitions for the same word.
Therefore, it is safe to advise language students to analyze the different meanings
of an unknown. Word by means of dictionary usage.

Another important factor to consider is the students' unawareness of the

information that a dictionary contains. A dictionary generally contains at least the
following information about each word which can be used by the foreign language
learners:
1. Its spelling
2. The standard pronunciation
3. Definitions to represent the words one or more meanings
4. Parts of speech, such as noun, verb or preposition
5. Example sentence in which the word used
6. Synonym
7. Antonym

Other information may be included, such as the etymology or history of the

word and whether the word is "non-standard" or "absolute". The history of a word
is usually given at the beginning of the entry and often give information about the
way the word has developed its current meaning. Placing a word's etymology
before its definitions enables the reader to see where the fırst meaning of the word
come from. Many people, however, want to know what the most common current
meaning of a word is, and they expect to find that meaning given first In
recognition of this fact, some dictionaries now place the etymology at the end of
each entry, after the definitions. A dictionary may be more than a reference book
about a word; it can contain biographical and geographical knowledge as well as
lists of weights, measures, symbols and so on.

Dictionary use and reading comprehension

 With a good dictionary you can do the following:

 look up the meaning of an English word you see or hear
 find the English translation of a word in your language
 check the spelling of a word
 check the plural of a noun or past tense of a verb
 find out other grammatical information about a word
 find the synonym or antonym of a word
 look up the collocations of a word
 check the part of speech of a word
 find out how to say a word
 find out about the register of a word
 find examples of the use of a word in natural language

Most of the research around dictionaries has focused on reading

comprehension. Bensoussan (1984) wanted to see if dictionary use improved the
reading comprehension of advanced EFL students in Israel. Two groups of
students read texts using either monolingual or bilingual dicti0naries.A third group
had no dictionary access. The dictionary user group was asked to underline the
words they looked up while reading. Then, with the text still in front of them, all
answered multiple-choice questions designed to check reading comprehension.
Surprisingly, dictionary use had no significant effect on reading comprehension.
Even more surprising was the discovery that dictionary use had no effect on
reading speed. This has aroused a lot of interest among researchers.
 In a more recent experiment, Knight (1994) investigated the effect of on-
line dictionary access on vocabulary acquisition and reading comprehension in
Spanish. Students were stratified according to their American College Test verbal
scores and were randomly placed in two groups, half having access to an on-line
dictionary and the other half having no dictionary access. The students were
asked to read two short articles in Spanish via computers. Any words looked up by
the dictionary group were electronically recorded without their knowledge. After
reading, the students were asked to write down in English everything they could
remember, and then given two vocabulary tests: providing an English equivalent to
a Spanish word, and selecting a definition from five alternatives.

The same tests were re-administered as a post-test two weeks later to test
long-term retention. The results clearly showed that the dictionary-using group
outperformed the no-dictionary group both in reading comprehension and
vocabulary acquisition. Knight's results suggest that dictionary lookup does not
disrupt short-term memory, but rather enhances comprehension. He also found
that low verbal ability students are more dependent on vocabulary knowledge in
reading than high verbal ability students seem to be. For this reason, he claims,
weaker students are disadvantaged if told to simply guess meaning from context
and might benefit more from dictionary use than high proficiency students, who
can make better use of contextual guessing.

However, conclusions about the value of dictionary use depend to some

extent on the nature of the reading material used. We can probably safely
conclude that students will learn more new word meanings if they can both see the
words in context and also have access to a dictionary.

Dictionary use and vocabulary learning

 Relatively few studies have focused centrally on vocabulary learning
through dictionaries. The most likely reason is that language practitioners agree
that words should not be learnt or taught in isolation, and dictionaries are seen as
reinforcing students' tendency to learn individual words (Honeyfield, 1977), so this
aspect of language learning has not received the research attention it deserves.

Summers (1988) explored the relationship between dictionary use and

vocabulary learning in a series of experiments in which the subjects were assigned
randomly to four groups. Three groups had access to one of three different types
of dictionary entry types: definition only, example only, and definition plus
example. The fourth group received no dictionary assistance. The experiment
found that in all cases, comprehension was substantially improved when a
dictionary entry of any type accompanied the text. The third experiment, which
tested the value of the three different definition techniques, showed that the mix of
definition plus example was the most successful for production purposes.
Summers concluded that "all three types of dictionary entry substantially improved
students’ performance" (p. 123), but that dictionary use aided comprehension
more than production. According to Summers, the dictionary, though not always a
perfect tool, is "a useful one, with which to gain further understanding of the range
of use of new language, leading eventually to accurate production, mainly in
writing".

In a study by Luppescu and Day (1993), Japanese EFL university students

were asked to read a short story in class. Half the students read with access to a
bilingual dictionary of their own choice; the rest were not permitted to use
dictionaries. Immediately after reading, the students were given a surprise
vocabulary test. The dictionary-users' scores were, on average, about 50% higher
than the non-users' scores. However, there were two trade-offs: the use of
dictionaries slowed reading speed, and learners tended to be confused when
headwords in the dictionary were followed by multiple entries.
 Fraser (1999) focussed on the strategies ESL students said they preferred
to use when they met unfamiliar words while reading, and how successful these
strategies were for vocabulary learning. Self-reflective data was gathered from
eight students who read eight texts over a five-month period. A week after
completing each reading, the students did a recall task to measure their learning of
the self-identified unfamiliar words.

The results showed that when participants either only consulted, or only
inferred word meanings, they recalled around 30% of the words. However, when
they first inferred meanings and then consulted, their recall increased to 50%.
Several recent survey studies all reinforce the importance of dictionary use in
vocabulary learning. In Schmitt's (1997) study, Japanese EFL learners reported
"use of a bilingual dictionary" as one of their most useful strategies, and that they
used bilingual dictionaries most frequently. The studies by Gu and Johnson (1996)
and Kojic-Sabo and Lightbown (1999) all demonstrate that learners' vocabulary
knowledge and their overall language proficiency are, among other factors, much
related to their dictionary use.

TYPES OF DICTIONARIES

There are many types of dictionaries, but in this investigation, are only mentioned
a few of them and the most used are detailed below:

 Bilingual Dictionary. A bilingual dictionary or translation dictionary is a

specialized dictionary used to translate words or phrases from one
language to another.
 Monolingual Dictionary. Explains the meaning of a word in the language
that you are learning. 
 Etymological Dictionary. Discusses the etymology of the words listed.
Often, large dictionaries, such as the Oxford English
Dictionary and Webster's, will contain some etymological information,
without aspiring to focus on etymology.
Etymological dictionaries are the product of research in historical linguistics.
For a large number of words in any language, the etymology will be
uncertain, disputed, or simply unknown. 

 Rhyming Dictionary. Is a specialist dictionary designed for use in

writing poetry and lyrics. In a rhyming dictionary, words are categorized
into equivalence classes that consist of words that rhyme with one another.
They also typically support several different kinds of rhymes and possibly
also alliteration as well.

 Mini-Dictionary. Is a little dictionary, also called a pocket dictionary.

 Thesaurus. In general usage, a thesaurus is a reference work that lists

words grouped together according to similarity of meaning
(containing synonyms and sometimes antonyms), in contrast to
a dictionary, which provides definitions for words, and generally lists them in
alphabetical order. The main purpose of such reference works is for users
"to find the word, or words, by which [an] idea may be most fitly and aptly
expressed," 

 Electronic dictionary. Is a dictionary whose data exists in digital form and

can be accessed through a number of different media. Electronic
dictionaries can be found in several forms, including software installed
on tablet or desktop computers, mobile apps, web applications, and as a
built-in function of E-readers. They may be free or require payment.
Most commonly used dictionaries

The most common types of dictionaries are monolingual and bilingual.

Traditionally, monolingual dictionaries have been preferred because bilingual
dictionaries are thought to tie learners down to a perpetual exercise in translation,
which might inhibit their ability to express in the target foreign language. Others
believe dictionaries of both types can be useful, but for different reasons.

The advantage bilingual dictionaries have is that learners can make use of
both their first and second linguistic knowledge to decode word meaning. A well-
chosen equivalent explanation can transit, in a single gloss, the part of meaning
shared by the L1 word and the L2 item, with little effort expended by the learner.
Monolingual dictionaries, on the other hand, describe meaning in a more analytical
way, giving synonyms and associations as well as parts of speech, derivations and
usage; etc.

The problem with monolingual dictionaries for foreign language learners is

the unavoidable inherent circularity of the entries. When the "feel" of the foreign
word is well conveyed, bilingual dictionaries can be more vivid than monolingual
ones for learners, but a common weakness is that these dictionaries often give
only sketchy information about items, and some fear that prolonged use of
bilingual dictionaries could perhaps retard second language acquisition. By the
same argument, monolingual dictionaries are believed to boost language
acquisition because they stimulate thinking in the foreign language.

However, these claims are based on assumptions about language,

language acquisition and language use, and little empirical work has been done to
bear out these views. Thus it is not possible to offer conclusive arguments for or
against monolingual or bilingual dictionaries. Rather, learners should not stick to
one type of dictionary but see the two types as complementary, serving different
purposes. Monolingual dictionaries are more useful for checking correct English
use of a word; bilingual dictionaries can show a learner how to say something in
English at all.

At this time, in which technology has evolved so much, the use of the digital
dictionary within classrooms has also emerged. For language instructors and
learners to participate in an increasingly digital world, they will need to use
technology via English to meet their educational and personal needs. Not long
ago, electronic dictionaries began to enter EFL (English as a Foreign Language)
classrooms and became more and more popular among Chinese university
students. In addition to reading dictionaries, students can also hear
pronunciations, watch illustrative videos and use other functionality (links, cross-
references, etc.)

Although electronic dictionaries have massive amount of information and

fast search, teachers and researchers still need to consider other factors in the
environment that could have an impact on student outcomes. This is not surprising
—although electronic dictionaries can be used as a tool in the same ways that
paper dictionaries can, they are capable of more than such tools, and both
learners and teachers must understand both the advantages and liabilities of using
electronic dictionaries. Therefore, some researchers consider electronic
dictionaries as valuable tools in EFL instruction and learning, while others view the
integration of electronic dictionaries into university EFL class with a number of
concerns, many of which remain unresolved.

Dictionaries are considered to be very useful language learning tools.

Language learners should be exposed to extensive reading and listening. Thus,
dictionaries are simple tools which help language learners to check pronunciation
and spelling and of unknown words. More importantly, they give meanings to
words which have not been understood by the user. Also, in learner’s dictionaries
that most EFL students use, they give the information on how a word is used in a
sentence. They are used to help language learner to check the meanings of words
or phrases that they do not understand, as well as the usages. Dictionaries are
very practical for both teachers and students in and out of class. What EFL
teachers should teach their students are the different ways of using a dictionary,
how to find words and also what other relevant information students can find in it.
Students need to realize that dictionaries can become their study companions at
home or away when their teachers are not there.

An electronic dictionary is a portable electronic device that serves as the

digital form of any kind of dictionary. Available in a number of forms (dedicated
handheld device, apps on mobile devices, CD-ROMs or DVD-ROMs and online
products), electronic dictionaries range in function from general single-language
dictionaries to very specific, terminology-based dictionaries for medical, legal, and
other professional languages. As technology has advanced, the number of
features that are available in electronic dictionaries has also increased. Many of
them are equipped with text-to-speech and speech-to-text capabilities, interactive
vocabulary games, vocabulary journal, data transportation and internet access.

Most recently, electronic dictionaries have become available on mobile

devices such as smartphones and tablet computers. There are a number of
differences exist between the traditional paper dictionary and the electronic ones.
Because of the function of data transportation and internet access, the number of
vocabulary items included in electronic dictionaries exceeds the number in the
paper ones. Also, there are some unique features that cannot be found in the
paper dictionary, for example, interactive learning functions such as vocabulary
games, speech features, and reference book. Clearly, the electronic dictionary is
faster in search speed, lighter in weight, smaller in size and more mobile than the
paper one.
 Use of Electronic Dictionary With the unique features, the use of electronic
dictionary causes some problems as well. Electronic dictionaries can prevent
students guessing skills and contextualized thinking in vocabulary acquisition. EFL
learners tend to separate words from the context and they do not realize that using
the context would help them understand the meanings. With the fast-speed search
functionality of electronic dictionaries, they would immediately look up the
meanings of all unknown words and phrases in a sentence while actually getting
the meanings of one or two key words plus guessing meanings from context would
serve the purpose in the same way. Moreover, electronic dictionaries can cause
distraction. It often takes place when students use electronic dictionaries in the
classrooms. It happens when students are trying to look up the meaning of new
words. They tend to go straight ahead and look up every unknown word they come
across because it is easy and fast for them to get the meanings and other relevant
information from electronic dictionaries. However, according to Peters’ (2007)
research, those words are not related to the focus of the lesson in most of the
cases. As a result, students might ignore what the teacher is saying and pay little
attention to the lesson.

Electronic dictionaries can also be very disturbing when students use them
in the classroom. The voice of electronic dictionaries that suddenly occurs in class
could be very annoying or surprising to the teacher and the students who are busy
doing their work. The using of electronic dictionary by one student could affect the
rest of students because they would be easily hearing pronunciations and
explanations of irrelevant words while their teacher is teaching, which could
discourage them from focusing on the lesson.

Additionally, there are also arguments of whether to trust the correctness

of pronunciation and explanation in electronic dictionaries because some of them
are not accurate due to various reasons. This could also cause students to be
confused when they judge over the teacher’s correct pronunciation or provided
meaning.
 CONCLUSION

In conclusion, it can be said that the benefıts of dictionaries to language

learners should not be ignored in language classes. Unfortunately, in most
classrooms, very little time is provided for dictionary use. But it is an undeniable
fact that a learner who makes good use of a dictionary will be able to continue
learning outside the classroom and this will give him considerable autonomy about
the decisions he makes about his own learning in a teaching and learning
situation.

Talking about types of dictionaries either monolingual or bilingual, play an

important role in language learning. Dictionary-users in research studies all tend to
show a clear advantage over non-users in the number of words learnt. It would
seem that for learners wanting to form a well-rounded concept of a word meaning,
the dictionary is probably the most convenient and reliable support they can
employ, because unlike first language learners, they do not have access to the
many excellent human dictionaries in the form of parents and teachers, who are
frequently asked to give explanations for new words to children. While dictionaries
give low verbal ability learners a special advantage, it cannot be assumed that
high proficiency students will use a dictionary less than low proficiency students.
 As researched, some studies reveal that while dictionaries can give
weaker learners much needed linguistic knowledge, they help high proficiency
learners to gain confidence during reading. Studies have led researchers to
conclude that, whether for comprehension or vocabulary learning, an approach
that combines dictionary use with contextual guessing is more effective than either
single method in isolation. Whether teachers’ pay much attention or not, many
learners use dictionaries substantially. In fact, one trait that characterizes good
learners is their clear awareness of what they can learn from a dictionary about
new words, particularly collocation and spelling. Dictionaries and their use deserve
more attention from teachers in the classroom.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Schmitt, N. (1997). Vocabulary learning strategies. Editorials in N. Schrnitt & M.

McCarthy. Cambridge University Press.

Summers, D. (1988). The role of dictionaries in language learning. Editorials in R.

Carter & M. McCarthy. London

Ilson, Robeıt. (1985). Dictionaries, Lexicography and Language Learning.

EditorialsOxford: Pergamon Press.

Nuttall, Christine. (1982). Teaching Reading Skills in a Foreign Language.

London: Richard Clay Ltd.
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