Japanese Dictionary – Books

There are some excellent Japanese Dictionary books available, whether you require Japanese to English translation or Kanji information. Below, I have outlined a few of the dictionaries you should have on your shelf for daily reference.

Japanese/English

For a basic Japanese dictionary, I would recommend the Berlitz Language: Concise Japanese Dictionary. It uses romaji for its alphabetization, so if you’re used to working in hiragana, the word-order in the Japanese to English section, may seem a little strange. But that said, it’s a great dictionary for day-to-day use.

Each word is given in English, Romaji and Kanji/Kana. There are also usage examples given for some words. In the centre section are some notes on using the dictionary as well as grammar notes and word games. The front has a full list of Joyo Kanji, though it only shows the character and some readings.

Kanji

Probably the best two Kanji dictionaries for learners or intermediate students are the Kodansha Kanji Learner’s Dictionary and The Learner’s Kanji Dictionary. They each have their own merits; if you can afford both, I’d recommend buying both. If not, I’ve personally had more use from the former than the latter.

The Kodansha dictionary has a new style of Kanji lookup which I have found very intuitive. It’s known as the SKIP system and works on the basic structure of the character, rather than requiring in-depth knowledge of radicals.

Key kanji characters are picked out in red, so you are well aware of what’s really important to learn, and what is merely interesting.