Random House Japanese-English English-Japanese Dictionary
002 4 This dictionary is really thorough compared to Martin's Concise Japanese Dict . or Basic Japanese-English Dict . , having 50 000 words compared to 19000 and 3000 words , respectively . There are even medical , scientific and technical words that , as a student at a technical course , I find really useful . The words are written in romaji and also normally in KANJI instead of KANA , which helps a lot . It is organized after the romaji spelling which makes it fast to find what you are looking for . Ok . . . now to the less favourable sides of the book . First of all - WHY oh why are the books english and japanese parts not mirrored ? I have occasionally stumbled upon words that are in the english-japanese part , but not the other way around . REALLY annoying . Secondly - why not print the verb type ( I , II , III ) instead of just stating vb ? Not a lot of ink , but enormously helpful . Anyway , though it doesn't get full score , I still think it is the best dictionary of the three I have tried .
014 4 rather extensive dictionary . . . i prefer not to see japanese words in romaji ( roman characters ) at all , but at least after you look up the word it has the kanji and / or kana listed for the word . . . . one thing to note : the paperback version ( the one with the girl on the cover , not the ' pocket ' version ) is made with what i would consider a ' substandard ' cover . . . . i suggest the hardcover . . . my paperback cover is just about to fall off . . . then i'll get the hardcover . . . but i urge everyone else to skip this step . . . either way , this is a must have for english speakers studying japanese . . . one day we'll each have a 30lb ' official ' japanese dictionary . . . but until then we have this fine book . . . subarashii , nakao sensei !
040 4 I bought this book before I studied Japanese in college . It's very useful when looking up words from English-Japanese . The roomaji is a little weird , but if it's still pretty good .
To all of those who complain about particles : GET A BOOK ON GRAMMER AND DON'T COMPLAIN ! A dictionary is just there to translate WORDS ! There are so many particles and so many exceptions that you NEED a whole book on just those !
052 4 THIS BOOK HAS BEEN VERY HELPFUL IN LEARNING THE JAPANESE LANGUEGE AND THE SYMBOLS IN THE WORDING . . . . . THIS WILL MAKE IT VERY HELPFUL IS OUR UP AND COMING TRIP THERE . . .
066 4 this is a veryy verrryy verryyyy good japanese english , enlgish japanese dictionary ! GET IT if you are taking japanese or if u want to leran japanese . . . its good ! seroiusly ! : D
037 4 I teach English in Okinawa , Japan . I take this dictionary with me to work everyday . It's been reliable in providing the correct translations . My students find it extremely helpful to have the kanji next to the word . Spelling English words correctly is difficult for them ; being able to scan the kanji helps us communicate faster . Also , I like the fact that it provides phrases , so you can see how the word should be used in a sentence . This feature is priceless . The fact that it's small is nice too .
007 4 As a student of Japanese six years , I am impressed with this dictionaries ability to satisfy the needs of a beginning and advanced speaker of Japanese . The dictionary's use of Kanji and description of the implications that each word gives in definite plus . This dictionary has everything a dictionary could offer except for naughty words . For those who wish to pursue intelligent Japanese conversational skills , this is the book .
009 4 I'm on my second copy of this book , since I wore my last one right out . My last one was the paperback , though , and this one has much better quality . Anyhow , I have no complaints . Rarely have I tried to look up a word in either language and not find a translation . It includes romanji , kana , and kanji to help all levels of Japanese students . So if you're looking for a quality , simple , and to-the-point dictionary , you can't go wrong here .
018 4 I am learning Jpanese and this publication has been an immense help . It is so easy and understandable . I just love how it dispays the words side-by-side in romaji and katakana . It contains very up to date words , and is perfect for any who plan on travel to Japan .
026 4 This is a dictionary of English-Japanese and Japanese-English translations . I like it because it includes the Japanese characters as well as the Romanized versions . There is a very quick introduction to pronounciation in the first few pages , but no grammar or conjugation hints , so you are better off getting Japanese for Dummies with the CD and Japanese Phrases for Dummies to help out in that area . This would be useful for a student using it for translation work .
050 4 I was very pleased with my purchase from this seller . The book was cheap and in great condition . I would buy from this seller again ! ! ^ _ ^
059 4 I use this dictionary for my high school students who wish to learn more than just the basic vocabulary of a beginner's Japanese course . It is small enough for them to carry but detailed enough for their needs .
045 4 Overall I think this is one of the better dictionaries on the market . I've used it to translate things back and forth for my college level Japanese class and only recently have I started to notice some things that might bother me from time to time .
1 . As some reviews have mentioned the English-Japanese section is more in-depth than the Japanese to English . I wish this were better mirrored . For example the other day I came across the word mizutamari - I went to look it up but it wasn't in the Japanese to English side . Thanks to the kanji and an accompanying picture I went and looked up puddle in the English-Japanese side . It was there . Now why wouldn't the author just make his dictionary a little thicker and mirror the words better ?
2 . I wish that this would specify what type of verb it is - some of them are obvious but it'd be nice to note that a verb is a u or an ru in some cases .
Other than that the dictionary is pretty nice - it gives the words in kanji after the romanji or hiragana version , it's easy to use , the Japanese side goes by our English alphabetical order , the dictionary includes phrases and different ways to use words , and overall it is pretty thorough . But if you want to translate primarily Japanese back to English there should be a better dictionary for you .
001 4 I picked this book up at a local used book store to help with translating some manga ( comics ) for a friend . Upon bringing it home , though , I realized why the last person had gotten rid of it . While this is an EXCELLENT dictionary for translating english words to japanese ( that part takes up almost 3 / 4 of the book ) , it's not worth it's weight in paper as anything else . The japanese to english section is small , incomplete , and basically pretty laughable . Many particles are completely omitted ( leaving you wondering what the heck ' wa ' does ) as are many common nouns that you see everywhere . Also , try looking up jade ( hisui ) in the english - japanese section , it'll be there . But if you look up ' hisui ' in the japanese - english section it wont be there . This happens to A LOT of words , very annoying . . . If you're only going to be using this book for english - japanese , go ahead and get it . Otherwise I recommend avoiding it unless you need a doorstop .
027 4 It tells you if it is a noun , verb , adj , adv .
Others don't .
Some common phrases .
Not bad at all .
053 4 After only a few years , the entire binding is coming apart - - it is almost split in two halves ! ( F.Y.I . , I bought it brand-new . ) One page started coming out the first couple months I had it . This is the reason for the lukewarm review .
As a reference , it is great , though not perfect . It has an excellent number of entries , and many entries in the English-Japanese section also give answers for related phrases and a mixture of usages . It also provides answers in various parts of speech , where applicable ( adjective , adverb , verb , etc ) . For examples , it doesn't give entire sentences as in Kodansha's , rather an excerpt just long enough - - this is good because giving many entire sentences wastes space .
However , even though it was published in 1997 , after the World Wide Web caught on fire , it doesn't show terms like link , click ( verb ) , email , and webpage ( so I didn't know how to properly write the adopted word e-mail phonetically in katakana until I got the Langenscheidt dictionary ) . It is very out-of-date with things like that . This is my other big gripe .
Sometimes words in the English-Japanese section are not in the Japanese-English section , but this doesn't happen too often . Sometimes I can't find a particular usage . Particles are defined in both sections . A minor gripe is the Japanese-English section is alphabetized per English rules , not Japanese rules , and also I would like to see the romaji gone completely from both sections ( or at least an alternate version ) .
This book badly needs to be updated . Because of that and most especially the terrible quality of the binding , I would give it only 2 stars - - except it has more entries than Kodansha's Furigana Dictionary .
I very much * want * a furigana dictionary , but read this comparison . Random House's has 666 pages and over 50,000 entries - - Kodansha's with a whopping 1200 + pages , has * only 30,000 * entries ! They waste paper on larger print ( which some people will like ) , but also waste * tons * of paper by writing out * entire sentences * where there is * no need * . I mean they don't write out sentences just to clarify weird usage , they just do them where not needed as a matter of course ! It's supposed to be a dictionary , not a grammar book .
It's very frustrating because I want a furigana or kana dictionary , but there's none out there ! ( Oxford puts out a dictionary with * no * pronunciation * at all * - - neither kana nor romaji - - how crazy is that ? ? ? You can write something but you can't say it ! )
It's a sad situation when the best book only rates 3 stars - - but that's the way it is . I can't understand why Random House hasn't updated their dictionary for the 21st century , not to mention fix the very poor binding . However , honestly , this dictionary is the best you can do right now if you are serious about expanding your vocabulary .
You just can't win !
003 4 As a Japanese language student , I found this dictionary to be a very useful tool in the beginning stages of learning Japanese . Most likely , the beginning student will learn to associate Japanese phrases with their respective Romanizations instead of thinking in Japanese script . For this reason , this dictionary is a good tool to help transition students from thinking in romanji to the respective Japanese scripts ( hiragana , katakana and kanji ) .
I have found this dictionary quite useful when I studied the Japanese language during my first year in high school . However , after I began associating Japanese phrases and words with hiragana , I began using a dictionary that allowed me to search words in the hiragana script ( a , i , u , e , o , ka , ki , ku . . . ra , wa , wo ) . It was difficult to go back to this Romanized dictionary .
As this dictionary is not exclusively Japanese to English or English to Japanese , this dictionary compromises its comprehensiveness . I have found that this dictionary doesn't include many more advanced or classical Japanese words and phrases that may be found in Japanese newspapers or official documents .
Yet , if you are a beginning Japanese student without any experience with Japanese script , this is a good start . However , if you are student who has more experience with the script , a better recommendation might be Kodansha's Furigana Japanese-English Dictionary or Kodansha's Furigana English-Japanese Dictionary .
004 4 While there is no substitute for a good electronic dictionary , in terms of amount of vocabulary and compact convenience , this is probably the best paper Japanese / English English / Japanese dictionary available .
It is very easy to use , and contains most of the vocabulary needed for day to day interactions . It is too large to be easily portable , and so is more of a desk reference than an on-the-move book .
The only drawback is that the Japanese / English portion of the book catalogs words using romajii , instead of hiragana or katakana . The overall impact on this is laziness to those trying to learn Japanese . Gaining speed in kana is essential , and using a romanized dictionary will not help progress . The kanji is available for Japanese words , but are usually of small type .
005 4 Living in Tokyo , it ` s been essential for me to have an effective translation dictionary . This one has filled the bill . True , it isn ` t necessarially the best choice for beginners , but as you begin to explore Japanese more , this book will keep up with you . In my Japanese language class , this dictionary has pulled through for us when other students ` dictionaries could not . The best feature is the easy-to-read Romaji ( English spellings ) that permit you to sound out the words without having to read Japanese . However , the Japanese is included also , meaning I ` ll be able to continue learning with this book for quite some time .
006 4 Novices and more advanced students and speakers of Japanese alike will find this a very handy reference to have on hand . Broken into two halves - - one an English to Japanese dictionary and the other the reverse - - the book allows students to easily locate whatever word they need .
The one fault is that the Japanese-English portion is in Romaji , or the English-letter representation of Japanese sounds , which can make locating some words difficult for a couple of reasons - - first , readers may not know the pronounciation of a given word in kanji ( which other books better address anyway ) ; and second , Romanization methods differ , yielding some confusion over the proper spelling of a given word . Still , a student with some knowledge of grammar should be able to look up spoken , Romanized , or kana-ized words without much difficulty .
008 4 As a student of Japanese , I've consistently found this dictionary lacking . Translating from Japanese to English , I often find that it's missing important words that I need . Translating from English to Japanese , more than once I've had my teacher tell me that the word this dictionary listed isn't the one that's usually used . Perhaps it's a difference in dialect , but considering that my teacher is from Tokyo , I have to wonder !
I'm writing this review because I've given up on this dictionary and am hunting for a better one . This book is okay for simple words , but beyond that , I've found I just can't trust it . Save your money .
010 4 This dictionary is of a respectable size , similar to collegiate dictionaries I've used . The paper has a nice quality and the text is easy to read . It's very handy translating to or from Japanese , but the word pool is not what I'd call complete . For one , I think that there should be more phrases listed as entries instead of buried within descriptions of words that make up those phrases . For another , the dictionary entries it does contain seem almost random at times and skip over a lot of commonly used words ( In both languages ! )
It's a good utility reference for the price , and certainly something you could shove in a backpack for class . But in a crunch , it has let me down many times and I've had to hit electronic romaji references online to complete translations that I believe common enough for any dictionary .
011 4 This book will serve you well for the first two years of ( university ) study . Personally , I didn't use it much after that , and have completely abandoned it after getting an electronic dictionary , which is much smaller , faster , and of course uses Japanese writing systems ( but is more challenging to use , since they are marketed more toward Japanese learners of English , and consequently the user manuals are in Japanese ) . I recommend Kodansha's ' Kanji Learner's Dictionary ' over this one for Japanese-to-English . Wean yourself off of this as soon as you can , because it does promote laziness in learning kanji . If you can't live without your English to Japanese and don't have the funds or patience for an electronic one , get a pocket dictionary or a phrasebook . This one is definately too big to carry around , especially if you are past your first two years or are actually in Japan .
012 4 I bought this book before my first trip to Japan , almost 4 years ago now . At the time I had just begun to really learn the language and took it with me for reference . Unfortunately , even at that point I found little use in it , the vocabulary in my experience tended to be lacking . The fact the Japanese section is both in romanji and in alphabetical order made it very counter-intuitive to use so it was quickly thrown to the side and forgotten .
As other reviewers have stated , nothing can beat an electronic dictionary these days , however people still looking for a print-and-bound dictionary or a cheaper alternative to purchasing a $200 - 300 piece of equipment would do well to look elsewhere . This one comes across as outdated and anyone who can read kana and kanji will soon find it become a hindrance . Beginners in Japanese need to learn hiragana and katakana immediately , which puts them outside the limited scope of this dictionary , and more advanced learners will find it easier to cross-reference entries written in Japanese text or consult with a more specific kanji or vocabulary reference text .
013 4 As a beginner student of Japanese , I found this dictionary to be invaluable . All the listings are in romanji so they're easy to find , but there's also a japanese ( kanji ) translation as well incase you want to know how it's written in true japanese . It offers about everything a beginner-intermediate learner can ask for . If your serious about learning japanese from scratch , read no further and pick it up right now ! It'll be the best 10 bucks you'll ever invest for your japanese .
I was reading the previous review about how horrible the japanese section was . I completely disagree with this . I have no idea what kind of words he was looking up . For me , I still believe that both sections were well done . It is normal for the english-japanese section to be larger for English usually has a larger more comprehensive vocabulary than most if not all east asian languages ? Well , I know it applies for Thai . ^ _ ^ I'm also a manga and anime maniac so I regularly use it to translate what I hear or read , and so far it has passed every test every word I've looked up , save for a few rare extreme insults . ( this is assumed that you know how to conjugate japanese verbs , because the dictionary lists them in their standard form or similar to the english indefinite form : iku meaning to go , can be said as ikimasu , iko , itte , etc . , so you'll need to recognize these when translating japanese to english . ) I've compared this dictionary to many others in its class and none compare to its comprehensiveness and clean layout . It also includes a little explanation about Japanese grammer and also has a table of jap syllables in hiragana , katakana , and romanji . You can compare the listings in the exerpts available on amazon.com for yourself if you want .
I don't think that hinder your learning of hiragana / katagana like some people may say . Because they are actually pretty easy to remember , and since hiragana / katagana translates into english romanji letters EXACTLY ! , you can make no mistake . Oh ! I nearly forgot to mention that it also contains phrases that adds to its general handiness . Actually , it amazed me many times by having the exact phrase I was looking for even when I didn't expect for it from a dictionary . Generally , if you just need to translate ordinary words used in everyday life , this book is definitely for you . I'm even also planning to buy a more permanent hardcover copy soon , because I've used mines so much so often that the cover and pages are getting a little worn out .
015 4 This is a dictionary that has trouble finding a niche . It doesn't have usage or grammar examples , as many dictionaries do , which makes it less than ideal for a beginner ; on the other hand , despite the large number of entries it claims to have , it's not nearly comprehensive enough for an intermediate or advanced student . However , it does have several good points , such as romaji and kana / kanji spellings for all words .
016 4 This dictionary is light-weight and easy to carry around Japan to help the intermediate student stutter through general conversation . However , this convenience comes at a price : not only does it bypass less common words , but it has the infuriating habit of omitting some entries in the Japanese-English section only to have them as the most basic definition in the English-Japanese area . If you're doing any real studying , I recommend you try another dictionary .
017 4 I'm trying to teach myself Japanese , and this book has been a great companion . It conatains almost everyword I ever needed to look up . This won't teach you much about grammar , but it makes a great suppliment .
The dictionary is completely in roomaji , so it requires no knowledge of kana or kanji . It does have the Japanese script for the word listed after it , though .
I got my copy from a second hand book store , and it fell apart at the spine after a few month , which is the danger of a thick-spined book . I have no idea how old the actual copy was , though , or how roughly its previous owners had treated it .
019 4 I bought mine about four years ago , and it's still with me in great condition . It's not insanely huge , but has a nice amount of words for both Japanese and English . If you look up a word in English that doesn't have a precise Japanese translation , it will give you the closest word . For example , if you look up a word like emanciated , it will have it in the dictionary , but will give you the definition of a very similar word followed by the word in parenthesis . Such as - emanciated : hiboshi ( starving ) . It helps a lot more than just not including the word at all , which I have found in other dictionaries .
Another thing that's helpful is the first twenty or so pages include a prounciation guide , as well as how to use the dictionary , a brief overview of the language , and a hiragana and katakana table ( that has helped me millions of times over the years ! ) .
One minor drawback is the fact that some words translated in English won't appear vice versa . You may look up a word in Japanese , find it's definition , and then look for the English word it states and it's not in there . I usually do this to verify specific definitions of words that have multiple definitions and sometimes they won't be in there .
Overall , this dictionary is really great . It's not too big , it has romanization , kanji , and has a price that is way lower than what I would pay . Highly reccomended for both pros and novices of the language . : )
020 4 This book is durable and has a very broad choice of words . I was absolutely lost without this . I implore anyone interested in learning Japanese to get it . The only problem I have with it is that it does not come out and say what stem the verbs are ( However , if you get a good book like Barron's Japanese Grammar , you'll figure it out ) .
I translated a song using this and Barron's Japanese Grammar ^ ^ ; ;
022 4 Unfortunately , where dictionaries are concerned there are very few offerings available for the English student of Japanese . Many of the larger ones are designed with the Japanese learner of English in mind .
This dictioanry is probably the best one you will find if you are learning Japanese , and it is certainly very good value for money ! I bought my copy about 6 years ago , and it has been used so often it is literally falling apart . I have lived in Japan for several years , and this dictioanry has , so far , fulfilled most of my needs , moreso than the Kodansha Basic Dictionary , which fails to provide a lot of words , but does maintain a phraseological approach that this Random House dictionary is sadly lacking . If you are looking for idiomatic usage of an English phrase in Japanese , you will proabably find that the equivalent of what you are looking for is not available in the English to Japanese section , so you will have to make do with a similar , but maybe less colouful way of expressing yourself , or buy and idiom book , and there are some good ones out there .
Still , all in all , you will be getting your money's worth with this , especially for understanding Japanese , but you may find it less useful when you want to express yourself in Japanese and look to this as a guide .
023 4 One November day last year , I was browsing around in a local book shop , and found this book in the languages section . Being interested in all things Japanese , I bought it .
What a good purchase it turned out to be . For a small dictionary , it has a surprisingly large number of words and definitions . It also gives multiple words for a single english word ( ex . ours = watashitachi no mono , ware-ware no mono ) , so the two Japanese words can later be looked up in the Japanese section for a prescise meaning .
Another excellent feature is the 15 - page dictionary guide , which provides a detailed explanation of pronounciation , plus a complete chart of romaji / hiragana / katakana characters .
My only gripe is that for a dictionary this comprehensive , it didn't include a phrasebook . Nevertheless , this is still a great dictionary , especially for those new to the Japanese language .
024 4 I first bought this dictionary for my univeristy course , it's small in size and cheap so I thought it would serve as a basic tool for word searching . But then , when I went to Japan , I found that this small dictionary is far from basic , I was particularly impressed when my Japanese friends failed to find words on their expensive electronic Japanese / English Enlgish / Japanese dictionaries , whereas I could using my old fashioned paper dictionary ! I would highly recommend this to any beginners . Not only was I impressed by the comprehensive word bank size , but also , it gives romaji , kana and kanji ( where appropriate ) in all word entries . I wouldn't even think of leaving the house without this when I first arrived in Japan !
025 4 This is a very basic Japanese-English dictionary that should be avoided by any intermediate-or-better learners . There are dicitonaries out there which have so many more words in them that this one is just kind of superfluous . Its simplicity may make it useful for beginning language students , but people who have been at it for a while should avoid it .
Ivan Rorick
028 4 I've been studying Japanese for 6 years , and along with way , started to collect different Japanese dictionaries . When I found this Random House dictionary , I loved it so much that I bought another one as back-up ( in case I lost the first ) . . . and then bought a 3rd one in Hardcover to keep at my desk at all times .
It is so complete - and offers translations for phrases commonly-used in English . For example : ease . . . to be at ease , to be ill at ease , to ease one's mind , etc .
If I didn't love collecting different dictionaries so much , this is the only one I need .
029 4 Needing to teach Japanese to myself at the moment , I have foudnd this book most useful . It is comprehensive , and the fact that all words are done in Romaji ( Romanized charcter , ex : a , r , etc . , . ) as well as kanji and the kana , as appropriate , is very helpful . I highly recommend this book to anyone pursuing study of Japanese !
030 4 I was really surprised by the bang-for-the-buck factor of this dictionary . It has an adequate amount of words , written in a nice , clear font , with decent-sized hiragana and kanji accompaniment . The English-Japanese section is also startlingly comprehensive , and has really been a tremendous help to me .
A beginner can acquire this and have a very solid reference for the first year or two of his study , then upgrade to an electronic dictionary or a more expensive furigana dictionary .
Get it .
031 4 I bought this dictionary because it was reasonably priced and seemed fairly decent when I flipped through it at the bookstore . However , I second the reviewer who said its best use is a doorstop . I've found that more often than not , when I go to look up a word , it's nowhere to be found . I've come to rely on internet dictionaries more than this book , unfortunately .
A beginner to the language might find this somewhat useful , as well as anyone who gets confused by kana dictionaries ( where the ' alphabetical order ' isn't the same as English ) , but overall , I'd recommend saving your pennies and getting a decent electronic kanji / E-J / J-E dictionary .
032 4 This dictionary is one of the best I've seen in bookstores . Roomaji is given , which is SO helpful ! But as others have said , the J - E section is miserably lacking . Nothing on particles , no indication of verb type ( although this can be remedied by buying 501 Japanese Verbs ) , and there are a lot of words that just plain don't show up . For instance , hisui ( jade ) and hotaru ( firefly ) aren't in the J - E section , though they do show up in the E - J . Frustrating when you're translating Japanese into English . But definitely better than other dictionaries !
033 4 This review is from :
Random House Japanese-English English-Japanese Dictionary ( Paperback )
I recently had SIX people from Japan visiting me for 10 days . They ranged in age from 7 to age 77 . I speak no Japanese and they speak no English . With the constant help of this book , we had a fantastic time together . This book was particularly helpful because it translated English into Japanese written in letters and also written in symbols .
035 4 I bought this book because it was the first Japanese / English , English / Japanese dictionary I clicked on . This is the best Japanese dictionary for beginners . In fact , I suggest buying two - - the first will almost definently become worn from extreme usage . A must-buy for any native English speaker wanting to learn Japanese !
036 4 This is a nice tool for the beginner of Japanese ; the dictionary guide at the start discusses areas of pronunciations and word division that most Japanese-English or English-Japanese dictionaries leave out . It's table of hiragana and katakana is also good for those that have not yet learned those syllabaries ( although the archaic hiragana and katakana for the syllables wi and we were left out , as well as some katakana , such as tse and tso ) .
The English-Japanese section , being larger , has just about any word that you would want to look up , including regular dictionary terms like Middle Ages ( chuusei ) , yin and yang ( in to yoo / on to yoo ) , and xylophone ( mokkin ) that you might have trouble finding in another dictionary .
The Japanese-English section , although smaller and with entries written in roomaji ( Roman alphabet ) , includes a lot of terms existing only in Japanese , such as chaseki ( seat at a tea ceremony ) , irogami ( colored origami paper ) , and jinja ( Shinto shrine ) .
Both sections have accompaning kanji ( Chinese characters used in Japanese ) and / or kana with the entires .
There is an abundance of foreign borrowed words ( i.e . akusento , accent ) , but this dictionary should prove useful in building vocabulary and finding the kanji for a word .
038 4 Nakao Seigo-san's waei / eiwa , or Japanese-English / English Japanese dictionary , is a nice-sized quality paperback with enough entries , more than a pocket-sized edition , but nothing ultimate like the legendary Green Giant by Kenkyusha .
The English-Japanese entries have the translations in romaji ( written in Latin alphabet ) as well as the kana and where appropriate , kanji translations . They also cover homophones , such as bridge ( for crossing ) and the card game .
However , for those not versed in Japanese , the guide preceding the Japanese-English section is imperative reading , as it covers basic grammatical nuances and rules in Japanese . Regarding words borrowed from English , for example , one might observe how most Japanese words end in a vowel sound , hence Christmas is pronounced kurisumasu , plastic is pronounced purasuchikku . Then there are the copular nouns , or keiyoudoushi that accompany some adjectives . For example , an elderly person would be toshiyori no hito . Toshiyori is elderly , hito is person , which makes the copular noun no .
There are also some verbs whose infinitives include suru , which is kind of like do . For example , emancipate is kaihou suru . Others don't , like to reside , which is sumu .
I wore out my copy of this during my 72 day trip to Japan , and boy did it come in handy . This time , for my upcoming stay in Japan , I will treat my new copy much better .
039 4 This was my first english japnese dictionary i never thought i would actually read a dictionary but i would actually sit down and read it if i ever thought of word and i wanted to know it in japanese i would just look it up or if i was watching soemthing in origanal japanses and i heard a word i didnt knowi would look it up i recomend this for anyone
041 4 This review is from :
Random House Japanese-English English-Japanese Dictionary ( Paperback )
A pretty darn good dictionary , it is hard to find English / Japanese dictionaries that are comprehensive . I know some language purists bemoan Romaji in dictionaries , but it makes this dictionary uniquely accessible to both beginners and intermediate students of the Japanese language . Like many other reviewers have said , the Japanese and English sides aren't mirrored perfectly , but unless you are near fluent you probably wouldn't be held back all that much . It is a dictionary created for non native speakers and should be treated as such , unlike many other dictionaries this one is relatively stress free to leaf through on either the Japanese or English side . The only time I ran into any real difficulty in using this dictionary has been vague English descriptions of the Japanese words . Sometimes a Japanese word will have a very specific meaning , only to have a very vague English explanation . Often times this is harmless , but be aware that you could be using a word you think is a general term , but in fact has a very specific negative or positive connotation .
Anyway , despite it's faults I love it , no Japanese / English dictionary comes close to perfect , but this one is about as good as it gets for those starting out in japanese .
042 4 A pretty darn good dictionary , it is hard to find English / Japanese dictionaries that are comprehensive . I know some language purists bemoan Romaji in dictionaries , but it makes this dictionary uniquely accessible to both beginners and intermediate students of the Japanese language . Like many other reviewers have said , the Japanese and English sides aren't mirrored perfectly , but unless you are near fluent you probably wouldn't be held back all that much . It is a dictionary created for non native speakers and should be treated as such , unlike many other dictionaries this one is relatively stress free to leaf through on either the Japanese or English side . The only time I ran into any real difficulty in using this dictionary has been vague English descriptions of the Japanese words . Sometimes a Japanese word will have a very specific meaning , only to have a very vague English explanation . Often times this is harmless , but be aware that you could be using a word you think is a general term , but in fact has a very specific negative or positive connotation .
Anyway , despite it's faults I love it , no Japanese / English dictionary comes close to perfect , but this one is about as good as it gets for those starting out in japanese .
043 4 This review is from :
Random House Japanese-English English-Japanese Dictionary ( Mass Market Paperback )
Exactly what I was looking for . I was looking for a way to learn Japanese and this was my first step - - it even has Kanji for the various words , which will help me to learn to write it as well .
044 4 Exactly what I was looking for . I was looking for a way to learn Japanese and this was my first step - - it even has Kanji for the various words , which will help me to learn to write it as well .
046 4 This review is from :
Random House Japanese-English English-Japanese Dictionary ( Paperback )
I own a couple of Japanese dictionaries , and have seen several more . This one is probably better than average , both in terms of ease of use and number of entries . Nevertheless , I do not recommend that you buy it .
Instead , get an electronic dictionary . They are far , far easier to use , have far more entries and far more information . For example , you can look up a word by spelling it out in hiragana , get the English definitions , plus sample sentences , plus kanji . An electronic dictionary is far smaller and lighter . The only draw back is the price - - about $150 to $300 , depending on the model . Nevertheless , if you are really going to learn Japanese , a book dictionary like this is pretty much useless compared to the electronic version . Everyone in my third year Japanese class at UCLA extension would tell you the same thing .
Electronic dictionaries are readily available all over Japan , but they seem to be hard to find in the US . Amazon does not seem to carry them . You may have to ask around .
047 4 I own a couple of Japanese dictionaries , and have seen several more . This one is probably better than average , both in terms of ease of use and number of entries . Nevertheless , I do not recommend that you buy it .
Instead , get an electronic dictionary . They are far , far easier to use , have far more entries and far more information . For example , you can look up a word by spelling it out in hiragana , get the English definitions , plus sample sentences , plus kanji . An electronic dictionary is far smaller and lighter . The only draw back is the price - - about $150 to $300 , depending on the model . Nevertheless , if you are really going to learn Japanese , a book dictionary like this is pretty much useless compared to the electronic version . Everyone in my third year Japanese class at UCLA extension would tell you the same thing .
Electronic dictionaries are readily available all over Japan , but they seem to be hard to find in the US . Amazon does not seem to carry them . You may have to ask around .
048 4 If you have a decent grip of Japanese ( you can read the kana and maybe some kanji , know basic sentence structure , etc . etc . ) then this is a great everyday dictionary . The words are in romaji so English speakers can find the words quickly , and there are modern words in there that you might find in manga or casual conversation ( but this is no slang dictionary ) . One of the best perks of this dictionary is that it will give you the most commonly used word , unlike more extensive dictionaries that give you 6 different words and no means of differentiating which is what you're looking for .
However , like others have said , the English and Japanese sides are not mirrored so you won't find all the words in both sections ; this is annoying , but the thing's not very big for a dictionary so maybe they tried to cut down . Also if you don't have a good grasp of Japanese and don't know how to use a noun in a sentence , or don't know your particles , this dictionary will not explain them to you .
Overall , if you're not willing to shell out for a perfect dictionary , this is a decent substitute and a significant step up from the pocket dictionaries .
049 4 This review is from :
Random House Japanese-English English-Japanese Dictionary ( Paperback )
I was very pleased with my purchase from this seller . The book was cheap and in great condition . I would buy from this seller again ! ! ^ _ ^
051 4 I bought this book using a gift card at a local bookstore , while on a budget , so price was important to me . I looked at just about every japanese-english , english-japanese dictionary at the store and chose this one because I liked the structure of the entries ( including the kanji and the English-Japanese side includes some common uses of the word ) , and it seemed to be pretty comprehensive .
Upon using it ( for about 2 months now ) I find it to be exceedingly frustrating if you want to use it to use the Japanese-English side . For example , I didn't know that ' hanabira ' and looked it up in this dictionary , and assumed it wasn't there . It wasn't until I looked up ' petal ' on the English side that it made sense . This happens with too many words for the japanese-english side to be useful to anyone that is serious about translating something .
Another complaint that I have , is that it ' translates ' Bonito ( a type of fish ) from the English to the Japanese , crazy enough , it is also bonito . but it doesn't have the translation for koala , which I think is a more common animal to come up in conversation . I have encountered a few other instances like this where common words are absent but it is not nearly as common as the failings found in the Japanese-English portion of the book .
I am still glad that I purchased this book , because I got it primarily to work on my vocabulary , but I will probably buy another dictionary soon to make up for this one's failings .
054 4 This is a perfect dictionary for those who have no experience with the Japanese alphabets ; it uses Romanized Japanese , and next to each word features the kanji / kana used in its purely Japanese counterpart . It has a pretty decent word-count and I still use it every now and then if a word proves elusive .
However , after I became acquainted with the kana , I found this text a bit annoying . It's easier to misspell the kana version of a word when you're using the Romanized Japanese . The kanji has no furigana ; yes , some of them are self-explanatory , but certainly not all . And if you're just starting out with kanji , you're usually not sure which syllable goes where , so it's actually a little bit annoying until you gain more experience . Another negative note : this dictionary is easy to use as a crutch in order to avoid those scary kana - - and of course , learning the kana is the most useful thing you can do !
I think it's a pretty valuable resource , and I am certainly not sorry I bought it . Beginners should find it a breath of fresh air . However , an intermediate or higher level Japanese-language student will find this book more of a hindrance than a help . If you fall into that beginner category , and are a serious student of the language , I encourage you to take the dive into kana . . . it's way more useful in the long run !
055 4 This is by far my favorite dictionary for Japanese . And believe me , I went through several trying to find one I liked . The Romanji and Kanji definitions are exactly what I needed as a beginner and now , as an intermediate student , they still prove very useful . I use this everyday .
I would also recommend The Kodansha Kanji Learner's Dictionary as a nice compliment to this dictionary . If you're using Japanese in a business environment , I might suggest Cassell's English-Japanese Business Dictionary which may be hard to find but is a good permanent piece for your reference collection .
056 4 All the ones I had where Japanese-English only so with this one it is a great way to look for the words , and it does bring some examples too but for a quick search tool or to look a bit more after know how the word is , it is very useful .
057 4 if you do not have knowledge prior on certain aspects especially words that do not translate . also there arent to many examples that tell you how or what is grammatically correct . . . . . . . but compared too most smaller compacted dictionaries , this has the least translations per word that arent explained of the meaning . . . . . . but like i was saying with lack of examples this dictionary doesnt explain how to speak in past / present tense , the words may change less but there is words im sure they could put in to help us that are nihongo illiterate .
058 4 This review is from :
Random House Japanese-English English-Japanese Dictionary ( Paperback )
I use this dictionary for my high school students who wish to learn more than just the basic vocabulary of a beginner's Japanese course . It is small enough for them to carry but detailed enough for their needs .
060 4 There is only one problem with this extensive and useful dictionary ; it's paperback . A reference like this really almost needs to be hardcover ; I've saved the pieces of mine , but I really should get a new one .
061 4 What can I say about this dictionary ? I think it's good for beginners and intermediate students . It's a thick , desk reference-type book that's a bit hard to carry around , but that can be good because it has a lot of entries . Also , it has both J > E and E > J , which is nice , and it put the kanji form of the word within the definition , which is great .
Two things I don't like about it , though : it uses romanization for J > E , which requires that you first romanize a word in order to look it up . I prefer to have Japanese-style ordering so I can practice better .
Second , I think the print is too big . They could have made a smaller book if they'd scrunched the text a bit more . Just as many words , and fewer pages .
062 4 This dictionary is great for anyone in need of a Jap-Eng Eng-Jap dictionary . I was skeptical of buying this , as I had never bought a dictionary from Random House before ( I usually go for Oxford , sometimes Webster ) . But all in all , a good product . I'd reccomend it .
063 4 This dictionary has been very helpful for translating back and forth in my studies . I've found translating from Japanese to English harder than the other way around . Because I've just begun learning , I find myself stumbling around trying to find the meaning for words . It lacks any entries for particles . I've been unable to find some words . I believe this book is better for those who have a better understanding of the language , and who know most of the common words already .
If you're just starting out I recommend buying a book specifically of basic words and particles first , or with this book .
If you're wanting to translate manga , I suggest another book all together .
067 4 The best Japanese-English dictionary I've even used . Highly recommended !
068 4 Spiffy dictionary , however a large English-Japanese section would've made it perfect . Also , there is so much information in the book , two words ( i.e . ki [ tree ] and ki [ spirit ] ) are put next to each other . . . sometimes you have no clue what you're looking for : D ( great book )
069 4 This is a great dictionary - - unless you wish to look up a word starting with a letter falling between J and M , in which case you will be quite out of luck because somehow they neglected to include those four letters . Ah well , they were overrated anyway : Thank You ! , Random House , for paring down the English language so judiciously !
