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Translation - art & business » Translator resources »
English Dictionaries of Collocations and Set Phrases
Thread poster: BrianHayden
BrianHayden
BrianHayden
United States
Russian to English
Jan 2, 2014

I'm looking for an English-language dictionary that focuses on word-combinations, as opposed to idioms. There are plenty of dictionaries that cover "proper" idioms like "Let the cat out of the bag" or "Spill the beans", but I need something that will collect bromides, cliches, common similes, terms of art, and combinations of words that just happen to occur together a lot ("firm grip", "aquiline nose", etc.). Most "regular" dictionaries cover these phrases and combinations as well, but they're n... See more
I'm looking for an English-language dictionary that focuses on word-combinations, as opposed to idioms. There are plenty of dictionaries that cover "proper" idioms like "Let the cat out of the bag" or "Spill the beans", but I need something that will collect bromides, cliches, common similes, terms of art, and combinations of words that just happen to occur together a lot ("firm grip", "aquiline nose", etc.). Most "regular" dictionaries cover these phrases and combinations as well, but they're not the primary focus, and consequently the dictionaries aren't that exhaustive when listing them. ▲ Collapse
 
Phil Hand
Phil Hand  Identity Verified
China
Local time: 12:54
Chinese to English
Collocations Jan 2, 2014

What you're after is a dictionary of collocations. There are a couple out there: Oxford do one here https://elt.oup.com/catalogue/items/global/dictionaries/9780194325387?cc=global&selLanguage=en and there's a Macmillan one that looks OK. A name to follow Google around is John Sinclair, because he was one of the people who first took an interes... See more
What you're after is a dictionary of collocations. There are a couple out there: Oxford do one here https://elt.oup.com/catalogue/items/global/dictionaries/9780194325387?cc=global&selLanguage=en and there's a Macmillan one that looks OK. A name to follow Google around is John Sinclair, because he was one of the people who first took an interest in collocations. ▲ Collapse
 
urbom
urbom
United Kingdom
Local time: 05:54
German to English
+ ...
search the forums Jan 2, 2014

This topic has been raised before on this site. Phil's suggestion of the OUP collocations dictionary is a good one. You'll find more resources if you do a search of the forums for the word collocation.
http://www.proz.com/?sp=forum&action=SearchForum&advanced=y
 
Tiffany Hardy
Tiffany Hardy  Identity Verified
Spain
Local time: 06:54
Spanish to English
BBI Combinatory Dictionary of English Jan 2, 2014

I use this so often in my work, I don't know how I could get through a day with out it. It is especially helpful when you're not sure of exactly which preposition is appropriate.

http://www.amazon.com/The-BBI-Combinatory-Dictionary-English/dp/902723261X
 
Aelf
Aelf
Poland
Local time: 06:54
English to Polish
+ ...
+1 to BBI Jan 2, 2014

One of the most useful dictionaries ever. I still have the first edition which I've been using since the mid-90s. I have to buy the new one, though - it seems even better.
 
Hannah Keet
Hannah Keet  Identity Verified
United Kingdom
Local time: 05:54
German to English
+ ...
Online collocation dictionary Jan 3, 2014

I've found http://www.ozdic.com but I've only used it a couple of times so can't vouch for the quality.
 
Diana Edmond
Diana Edmond
United Kingdom
Local time: 05:54
Member (2008)
Italian to Romanian
+ ...
Longman Collocations Dictionary and Thesaurus Jan 4, 2014

In my opinion, the Longman dictionaries are very helpful and user friendly, and are definitely worth buying.

http://www.pearsonelt.ch/LanguageTeaching/Dictionaries/Dictionaries-British/1449/9781408252260/Longman-Collocations-Dictionary-and.aspx
 
Diana Edmond
Diana Edmond
United Kingdom
Local time: 05:54
Member (2008)
Italian to Romanian
+ ...
Valuable resource Jan 4, 2014

Hannah Keet wrote:

I've found http://www.ozdic.com but I've only used it a couple of times so can't vouch for the quality.


The http://www.ozdic.com hosts the first edition of Oxford Collocations Dictionary and is, therefore, a valuable free resource.
 


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English Dictionaries of Collocations and Set Phrases


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