Dictionaries
Introduction
This page features a collection of some favorite multilingual dictionaries. Unless otherwise specified, all resources are freely available online. This list will be updated, so check back soon!
Multilingual
This database features links to hundreds of multilingual dictionaries for 170+ languages. Lexilogos is the best resource for historical dictionaries, a crucial resource for transcribing documents that follow older spelling conventions. Supplementary pages default to the French language and most pages can be viewed in English.
Reference works are also available for older languages (visit Lexilogos for a complete list):
Early Modern English (16th-18th centuries)
Late Modern English (18th-20th centuries)
Classical French (17th century)
Modern French (18th-19th centuries)
German (19th century and earlier)
Latin (medieval through modern)
This encyclopedia features information about thousands of writing systems and is an excellent general transcription reference.
Browsing options: Abjads | Alphabets | Abugidas | Syllabaries | Semanto-phonetic scripts | Undeciphered scripts | Alternative scripts | Constructed scripts | Fictional scripts | Magical scripts | Index (A-Z) | Index (by direction) | Index (by language) | Index (by continent) | What is writing? | Types of writing system | Differences between writing and speech | Language and Writing Statistics | Languages.
Please note that this resource also includes pages about constructed languages, e.g., Klingon or Wakandan.
This open-source dictionary features English-language information about 7.5 million words from over 4,300 languages. Includes endangered and extinct languages, reconstructed languages, and sign-based languages.
Browse by languages, scripts, topics, appendices, abbreviations, frequency lists, and more. Individual entries feature information about a term's use in each language in which it appears. Entries may include pronunciation with audio playback, etymology, synonyms, derived terms, declension, and more. Many entries are also viewable in other languages, notably Simple English, French, Malagasy, Chinese, Russian, German, and Spanish.
German ↔ English
This dictionary is the ideal place to start if you aren't sure how to spell a word. Even close guesses based on your initial transcription will give you excellent suggestions.
More than a standard dual language dictionary, this resource includes discussion forums grammar trainers, and online language courses. See common words in common and uncommon contexts.
Nathan Bailey's dictionary English-German and German-English.
Published in print in 1801 and now available in digitized format via the Internet Archive. This dictionary is a snapshot of turn-of-the-19th-century spelling conventions in both German and English.
Print
Langenscheidt standard dictionary German: German-English, English-German (Revised and updated)
"This dictionary has been created using dictionary databases owned by HarperCollins Publishers Ltd."--Title page verso. "This dictionary uses the new German spelling system based on the current official guidelines and DUDEN recommendations"--Title page verso (WorldCat).