What this seminar will cover

Important factors to bear in mind when choosing a bilingual dictionary How to use the dictionary navigation tools to get to the right answer quickly and efficiently Abbreviations and symbols used in the dictionary

How the dictionary can help you with:

irregular plurals gender case compound words the position of adjectives idioms

How the dictionary can help you with verbs: tense, subject and object transitive and intransitive verbs reflexive, impersonal, separable & phrasal verbs verb lists & verb complementation

Avoiding mistakes Extra features

Oxford University Press 2005

What any good dictionary should offer

Range of vocabulary Up-to-date vocabulary Ease of use

Clarity of design
Clear entry structure Large number of examples

Pointers towards the right translation

Help with forming sentences in German Model letters, verb lists, and other helpful material And only with the Oxford-Duden German Dictionary a free pronunciation CD-ROM that lets you type in any German word, phrase, or sentence and hear it spoken back so you can practise speaking German for presentations or exams

Oxford University Press 2005

What your dictionary can help you with

finding wait for quickly at wait ? translation of since and the correct tense in German?

Shes been waiting since three oclock for the train to London.
warning that the 24 hour clock is much more likely in German? warning that for = auf + accusative in this context? zu/nach?

Sie wartet seit fnfzehn Uhr auf den Zug nach London.
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Navigating the dictionary

German-English section first, then English-German blue-edged section in the middle separates the two sides printed thumb tabs on the outside margin of every page show which letter appears on that page running heads at the top of the page show the first and last words on that page

NB: All this applies to the Oxford-Duden German Dictionary.

Other dictionaries may have different conventions.

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Navigating a German-English entry

nouns listed with gender swung dash represents first element

dots and underlines indicate stress position and length of vowel

irregular verbs marked

plural of nouns older spellings marked with asterisk

genitive of nouns

Oxford University Press 2005

Oxford Duden German Dictionary 3rd edition 0-19-860974-4

Navigating an English-German entry (I)

headword, in bold phonetic symbols using the IPA noun translations with gender

same spelling, different meaning swung dash represents headword grammatical categories indicated by letters senses indicated by numbers

signposts to meaning in parentheses

guidance on register and usage

freely interchangeable translations are separated by a semi-colon

Oxford Duden German Dictionary 3rd edition 0-19-860974-4

Oxford University Press 2005

Navigating an English-German entry (II) to brew beer

narrow the meaning by using context

brew: transitive verb, intransitive verb, or noun?

Bier brauen
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der Tee zieht

Oxford Duden German Dictionary 3rd edition 0-19-860974-4

Common Grammatical Categories

Adj. Adv. Art., art. Hilfsv. Konj. Demonstrativpron. n. adjective adverb article auxiliary verb conjunction determiner noun describes a noun tells you how sth is done definite article = the indefinite article = a used with main verb to show tense links two phrases or two words defines which noun thing, person or idea sad, traurig quickly, schnell the, der, die, das a, ein, eine, ein I have made ich habe gemacht and, und the, those, das, diese life, Leben

2. Part.
Prp.

past participle
preposition

forms perfect tense with aux verb

used with noun to show position

I have travelled ich bin gereist

near, nahe

Pron., pron.
Possessivpron. refl.

pronoun
possessive pronoun reflexive verb

stands instead of a noun

word used to show who sth belongs to verb requiring a reflexive pronoun

he, er
my, mein to wash oneself, sich waschen

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Grammatical Categories Exercise

Match these words with the correct part of speech
blau gern der Art.

Adj.
Possessivpron. unr. refl. V. Prp. Adv. 2. Part. Demonstrativpron. Hilfsverb Konj.

bin
aber dieses gestohlen bei ihr sich denken

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Swung Dash (or Tilde) ~ and Hyphen The swung dash stands for the whole headword so the ending is added:
Frau, die woman ~en women

In compounds the swung dash replaces the first word in the compound:
Koch-: ~schinken der boiled ham

Subject Field Labels

(Zool.) = Zoological (Jgerspr.) = Jgersprache (i.e. to do with hunting)

Check the list of subject field labels in the abbreviations list inside the front cover of the dictionary to see whether it covers areas you are interested in

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Regional Usage
(Brit.) = British usage (Amer.) = American usage
(sdd.) = southern German (schwb.) = Swabian, e.g. Stuttgart

(sterr.) = Austrian usage (schweiz.) = Swiss usage

(nordd.) = northern German (hess ) = Hessen, e.g. Frankfurt-am-Main

(DDR ) = term used in former GDR

Register
derb (crude, coarse) dichter. = dichterisch (poetical) fam. = familir (informal) fig. = figurativ (figurative) geh. = gehoben (elevated, refined) Kinderspr. = Kindersprache (used by small children) Papierdt. = Papierdeutsch (stilted) figurative = metaphorical rather than literal, e.g. salopp (slang) scherzh. = scherzhaft (humorous) sptt. = spttisch (derogatory) ugs. = umgangssprachlich (colloquial) veralt. = veraltet (old-fashioned) volkst. = volkstmlich (vernacular term) vulg. = vulgr (vulgar)

Grtel der belt; den ~ enger schnallen (fig. ugs.) tighten ones belt (fig.)

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Sentence patterns
abbreviations are used to illustrate the order of elements in a sentence:
jmd. (jemand Nominative) somebody

jmdn. (jemanden Accusative) somebody

jmdm. (jemandem Dative)

jmds. (jemands Genitive) sb. etw. (etwas) sth.

somebody
somebodys somebody something something

example sentences are given within entries to show where prepositions are needed:
ask sb.s name nach jmds. Namen fragen

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Oxford Duden German Dictionary 3rd edition 0-19-860974-4

Phonetics
= short vowel _ = long vowel

/ = stress on 1st syllable

dot shows that the word erweise does not form part of betrblicherweise | = separable verb

stress pattern given, so stress on ge- of gehen

no stress pattern given, so stress on hin- of hinter as usual

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Oxford Duden German Dictionary 3rd edition 0-19-860974-4

Irregular Plurals lice

lice = Luse

Torverhltnis

Torverhltnisse
plural form same as plural adjective

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Oxford Duden German Dictionary 3rd edition 0-19-860974-4

Gender
1 4

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Oxford Duden German Dictionary 3rd edition 0-19-860974-4

Case
Nominative, Accusative, Genitive, or Dative? Read the examples:
jmdn. = jemanden jmdm. = jemandem use the Accusative use the Dative I help my friends = Ich helfe meinen Freunden dich shows the accusative is used here ihm shows the dative is needed here

I fell in love with my Julia = Ich verliebte mich in meine Julia

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Oxford Duden German Dictionary 3rd edition 0-19-860974-4

Compound Words
Hinterziehung
hintereinander Hintergrund hinterher Hinterlegung Hintern Hinterziehung

The position of adjectives

attr. = precedes a noun 17

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prd. = follows a verb

Oxford Duden German Dictionary 3rd edition 0-19-860974-4

Idioms
An idiom is a saying or expression whose meaning has evolved so that it is now different from the original literal meaning of the key words within it.

be out of the wood = ber den Berg sein

Finding Idioms
Ich muss zugeben, dass mein Bruder mir manchmal auf den Keks geht.

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Oxford Duden German Dictionary 3rd edition 0-19-860974-4

Verb Basics Types of verbs: Transitive and Intransitive

Reflexive
Separable English phrasal verbs Other help with verbs:

Verb tables
Verb complementation
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Quick refresher on grammatical verb terms (I)

Tense = present, future, past, conditional, imperfect etc.

Subject = the noun or pronoun that causes the action indicated by the verb
Gertrude loves Eric = Gertrude liebt Eric The dog ate the meat = der Hund hat das Fleisch gefressen

Object = the word or group of words which is affected by the action indicated by the verb Gertrude loves Eric = Gertrude liebt Eric The dog ate the meat = der Hund hat das Fleisch gefressen

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Quick refresher on grammatical verb terms (II)

Direct object = the noun or pronoun directly affected by the verb - Gertrude liebt Eric = Gertrude loves Eric - Gertrude liebt ihn = Gertrude loves him

- der Hund hat das Fleisch gefressen = The dog ate the meat
- der Hund hat es gefressen = The dog ate it Indirect object = the noun or pronoun indirectly affected by the verb. In English, indirect objects are usually preceded by a preposition (from, to, at, etc.) - Gertrude gab ihrem Bruder das Buch = Gertrude gave the book to her brother

- Gertrude gab ihm das Buch = Gertrude gave the book to him
- Eric lchelt Gertrude an = Eric smiles at Gertrude - Eric lchelt sie an = Eric smiles at her

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Transitive and Intransitive Verbs (I)

Transitive verb = tr. V. (transitives Verb) = verb used with direct object I wrote the letter = ich habe den Brief geschrieben Gertrude loves Eric and Wilhelmina = Gertrude liebt Eric und Wilhelmina she loves them = sie liebt sie Intransitive verb = itr. V. (intransitives Verb) = verb that doesnt have an object he died yesterday = er ist gestern gestorben she ran very fast = sie ist sehr schnell gelaufen Eric and Wilhelmina arrived yesterday = Eric und Wilhelmina sind gestern angekommen Transitive verbs do something to the object that follows them. Intransitive verbs stand on their own without an object following them.

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Transitive and Intransitive Verbs (II)

The same verb can be used both transitively and intransitively:

burn
burn coal in the stove = den Ofen mit Kohle feuern (transitive use) her skin burns easily = sie bekommt leicht einen Sonnenbrand (intransitive use)

fahren
links/rechts fahren = drive on the left/right (intransitive use) jmdn. ber den Fluss fahren = ferry sb. across the river (transitive use)

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Transitive and Intransitive Verbs Exercise

transitive (v.t.) and intransitive (v.i.) auseinander treiben: Die Polizei trieb die Menge auseinander.

sich zerstreute: Die Menge zerstreute sich.

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Oxford Duden German Dictionary 3rd edition 0-19-860974-4

Reflexive Verbs (I)

English-German: v. refl. = reflexive verb German-English: refl. V. = reflexives Verb
German reflexive verbs can be identified by the pronoun sich in front of the infinitive.

1st pers. sing. 2nd pers. sing. 3rd pers. sing.

ich du er / sie / es

mich dich sich

Ich freue mich auf... Im looking forward to... Beeile dich! Hurry up! Sie setzte sich. She sat down.

1st pers. pl.

2nd pers. pl. 3rd pers. pl.

wir
ihr sie / Sie

uns
euch sich

Wann treffen wir uns? When shall we meet?

Beeilt euch! Hurry up! Sie legen sich hin. Theyre having a rest. Versetzen Sie sich in meine Lage. Put yourself in my position.

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Oxford Duden German Dictionary 3rd edition 0-19-860974-4

Reflexive Verbs (II)

Many verbs can be used both reflexively and not reflexively:
- I really enjoyed myself. (enjoy is used here as a reflexive verb) - I really enjoyed that party. (here, enjoy is not a reflexive verb in English) Remember: just because a verb is reflexive in the source language, it doesnt mean its reflexive in the target language. None of the examples in the table on the previous slide were translated by a reflexive verb in English. You may have to adapt the given translation, changing sich to mich, dich etc.

make fun of sb. I make fun of him

sich ber jmdn. lustig machen Ich mache mich ber ihn lustig

A similar pattern of dative pronouns is used with verbs which have a direct object: ich wasche mich zieh dich an! but but ich wasche mir die Haare zieh dir die Jacke an!

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Impersonal Usage of a Verb

Impersonal usage of a German verb is marked unpers. Impersonal usage of an English verb is marked impers. When used impersonally, verbs take the impersonal pronoun es in German and it in English: es regnet = it is raining es schneit = it is snowing es fehlt an Lehrern = there is a lack of teachers es gibt ein Problem = there is a problem es gibt Probleme = there are problems A few German verbs hardly ever occur without the impersonal es: hapern: es hapert an etw. (Dat.) = there is a shortage of sth.

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Separable and Inseparable Verbs

Listed alphabetically according to the particle: fingan brachtehinunter kreuztedurch durchkreuzte under A: under H: under D: under D: an|fangen hinunter|bringen durch|kreuzen durch kreuzen

Phrasal verbs English Phrasal Verbsmarked are at the end of the entry,
Phrasal verbs are at the end of the entry, marked verb + preposition or adverb e.g. run away Other examples: give up, take off, let down There are no phrasal verbs in German
Phrasal verbs

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Verb Tables
Verbs are listed under their infinitive form. Common forms of some irregular verbs are cross-referenced to the infinitive:

German irregular verbs (marked unr. (unregelmig)) are listed in a section at the back of the dictionary, with the infinitive, preterite (with preterite subjunctive in parentheses) and past participle. For compound verbs (e.g. herunterreien), look up the simple verb in this case reien. Look up a German verb to see whether you need sein.

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Verb Complementation
= the range of structures that can be used after any given verb

I want Matt to leave.

You wont find exactly this phrase in the dictionary, but you will find a similar construction, e.g.: I dont want you to get the idea ich mchte nicht, dass Sie den Eindruck gewinnen

So the translation is:

Ich mchte, dass Matt weggeht.

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Oxford Duden German Dictionary 3rd edition 0-19-860974-4

Adapting Examples
Careful! Sometimes you may need to adapt a given translation: Nouns: may have irregular plurals may require modifications to definite and indefinite articles or possessive adjectives (e.g. mein meine or meinen) if you refer back to nouns in a following sentence, you need to use the correct masculine, feminine or neuter pronoun Verbs: need to be in the correct form, unless the sentence uses the infinitive need the appropriate reflexive pronoun, if they are reflexive (e.g. I had my hair cut = ich habe mir die Haare schneiden lassen) need to use the right prepositions (e.g. send down to the store for sth. = etw. aus dem Lager holen lassen)

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Oxford Duden German Dictionary 3rd edition 0-19-860974-4

Cross-checking
Cross-checking in the other side of the dictionary helps when:

a German word has several meanings

you are unsure which German translation to choose you dont know if the German word you know can be used in a certain context

you want to check the genitive or plural form

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What else can a good dictionary offer you?

1 Information about life and culture 2 Thematic boxes explaining
grammatical points and giving extra vocabulary, crossreferenced from the headword

3 Correspondence letter, CV, and

email templates; useful phrases when using the telephone, and an SMS glossary

4 Supplement on the German 5 Free pronunciation CD-ROM to help

you practise your spoken German spelling reforms and outline of basic German grammar, irregular verb tables, glossary of grammatical terms

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Oxford Duden German Dictionary 3rd edition 0-19-860974-4

Review (I)
Important factors to bear in mind when choosing a bilingual dictionary Navigating through an entry German-English, then English-German Explaining abbreviations and symbols: common grammatical categories swung dash (or tilde) and hyphen subject field labels regional labels register labels sentence patterns phonetics

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How the dictionary can help you with: irregular plurals gender case compound words the position of adjectives idioms
Oxford University Press 2005

Review (II)
How the dictionary can help you with verbs: tense, subject, and object direct and indirect objects transitive and intransitive reflexive impersonal Avoiding mistakes: adapting examples cross-checking Extra features

separable and inseparable

English phrasal verbs verb tables verb complementation

Questions
A chance to discuss any ideas or points raised in the seminar

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