Korean-Korean dictionary?/eDictionary?

[Gudrun]

I haven't been able to find any Korean thesauruses so I'm thinking about getting a Korean-Korean dictionary (book). I'm at an intermediate level; would it likely be too "advanced" for someone at my level? If anyone has a Korean-Korean dictionary they could recommend, I would really appreciate it.

I know that eDictionaries have been discussed before. Has anyone found one geared to English speakers learning Korean and not the other way around? And one that uses batteries obtainable in the U.S.? The ones I've seen on various websites definitely seemed geared to Korean people learning English.

Thanks for any advice

[dtymazda]

Have you tried Naver?

I know there's some iphone/ipod touch apps that are korean-korean, but since I'm not at that level I haven't tried them.

[Gudrun]

I do use Naver, but I was looking for something a bit more portable...

[austinfd]

There simply isn't a market (that I'm aware of) for anyone to make 전자사전 geared to English speakers. I see this as good news for you.

A paper Korean-Korean dictionary would be OK, but depending on it's intended Korean audience you may or may not find it helpful. (An elementary student dictionary would be more helpful than a more professional, adult one.)

But I would really recommend getting an electronic one. I don't think you'll have any battery issues. My Nurian is charged with a USB cable. Some might need a lithium battery, but I bet you could always find a replacement at a store like Radio Shack.

The other benefit to the electronic versions is that they allow much easier cross reference; you just click the unknown word, and you can start a journey linking around to many new words. Further, Since it is geared to Korean speakers, you can trust that the Korean example sentences are highly accurate, natural, and correct.

Sure, there are a lot of features in my dictionary that I have little use for. But you can get over those, or just use them in reverse!

[Gudrun]

Could you please tell me a little about your Nurian? What model do you have, features, etc. I've been considering that brand.
Thanks!

[austinfd]

It is certainly is full featured. I have the x9. There are lots and lots of features. Japanese and Chinese dictionaries as well, Korean idioms (but that is virtually useless for an English speaker, because they are listed in alphabetical Korean order, so you already have to know what you're looking for to search anything.

I mostly just use the E-K and K-E dictionaries, and jump around between them when a definition has an unfamiliar word. There is also an extensive set of picture dictionaries that cover dozens of topics. I haven't used them much yet.

However, I would not buy it again for one simple reason. When typing in Korean, if you make a mistake, pressing the backspace key deletes the entire 자모 (syllable block). On your computer, pressing back space just deletes a single "letter". Perhaps not such a big deal for short words, but it is very frustrating.

I"m not sure if that is just a Nurian characteristic, but no other dictionary I've seen does it. And you can certainly find all of those features in other dictionaries.

[Gudrun]

Thanks for the tip. I can see how having the entire syllable erased could get pretty annoying. I wonder why on earth it functions that way.. Anyway, I was wondering, since you seem to have very good experience studying Korean, if you know if Sharp of Casio might be good choices? Maybe your friends have those brands? I'm not interested in iRiver because I just don't need a ton of features and I don't want to pay for so many functions I won't use. I just want something functional that won't be frustrating (like that little Nurian backspace problem) and that doesn't require a battery I can't find in the U.S. Thanks for any advice.

[austinfd]

Sharp or Casio are great dictionaries... my Nurian is the only one that I've seen that erases syllables like that... if only I'd known to check! I wouldn't have bought it. I don't think you'll have trouble with the batteries. I don't know how the basic models are powered, probably with lithium batteries.. maybe AAA or something, but that's all very available in the US.

Again, most dictionaries are the same, and they only differentiate when you start spending more than $100.

[julia3202]

iphone's minjungs essence is nice. I figure it's a bit hard for me to use, but it's a full featured dictionary. Example word usage is a great learning tool.

It does cost a fair penny though.