Score:
1 2 3 (4) 5 6 7 8 9 10
“Four outta ten!”
Pros:
IPA pronunciation given (in Brazilian only) for every word; rather complete list of basic entries; Portuguese-English & English-Portuguese
Cons:
very few usage examples; no ways to differentiate multiple entries translating to one term in English; chart of English irregular verbs but no Portuguese verb tables; focus on Brazilian (only a “con” for European Portuguese learners); fairly high price if bought new
NTC publishes the ever-abundant Teach Yourself educational series, which means they have no shortage of experience in language learning materials. NTC’s Compact Portuguese to English & English to Portuguese Dictionary is a basic “compact” dictionary. The book is noticeably larger than other compact dictionaries on the market that I tend to prefer – search for our Oxford and Larousse reviews for physically smaller books that merit the title “compact”.
The vocabulary entries display a wide variety of pertinent, learner-aware choices, with everything from slang to Brazilian food and cultural items. The dictionary disappoints only students learning the European dialect of Portuguese, since the choice of vocabulary includes a bare minimum of European usage, and virtually no alternate European spellings.
The structure of the dictionary’s individual entries, however, lack helpful examples and indicators that benefit the very learners who tend to buy this kind of reference. For instance, a search for “guy” turns up a list of five Portuguese nouns that might match, with no further information. I would already have to know Portuguese to pick the right translation! Further, the dictionary lists noun genders and irregular noun plurals, but fails to indicate irregular verbs. Beginner dictionaries aimed at beginners label their entries more clearly.
A sidenote. NTC publishes the TY series, and I find it odd that their initial Portuguese course by Manuela Cook (also reviewed on this site) aims at European Portuguese, while their dictionary aims at Brazilian Portuguese learners, with IPA for the São Paulo dialect. Of course, they’ve since specialized with a course specific to Brazilian Portuguese, also reviewed on this site.
This dictionary has a scant few nice extras, like the pronunciation given in IPA for each and every entry in Portuguese (which assumes that you can read the International Phonetic Alphabet). You don’t get much in the way of an index – a table of weights and measures, a short introduction, and English irregular verbs (but no Portuguese irregulars!).
If you’re in the market for a Portuguese dictionary, I would spend less money on a more user-friendly volume. Additionally, if you dislike what you read in this review, I also recommend avoiding Langenscheidt’s Pocket Portuguese Dictionary. The two dictionaries are nearly identical, as far as these eyes can see.