Dictionaries
Dictionaries
Dictionaries help us to understand key terms. Most people are familiar with defining dictionaries – the ones that give definitions of words, like the Oxford English Dictionary (OED). There are also bilingual or translation dictionaries, which are used to translate words or phrases from one language to another. Finally, there are specialized or technical dictionaries, which focus on one topic or field of study. These are useful for terms that are unique to a certain subject area. Dictionaries can be in print or electronic, and there are free online dictionaries.
Examples of Dictionaries
- Oxford English Dictionary
- Collins and Robert school French-English Dictionary
- Black’s Law Dictionary
.
Remember! In-text citations and reference list entries for print and online dictionaries are very similar. For online dictionaries, add a retrieval date and a URL at the end of the reference list entry, i.e.: Retrieved July 14, 2023, from https://www.oed.com/
.
Dictionaries with One Author
.
Reference List Entry: Format (10.2-10.3) Author. (Date). Title. Publisher. Retrieval Date, from URL, if applicable.
Reference List Entry: Example
Waite, M. (Ed.) (2012). Paperback Oxford English dictionary (7th ed.). Oxford University Press.
Remember! The author is the person(s) or the group responsible for creating the work (9.7) and can include the editor, or a group or organization.
.
Remember! The edition statement is part of the title, although it does not appear in italic font in a reference list entry. If a work has an edition statement, the edition is included in parentheses following the title (10.2). The edition is not included in the in-text citation.
.
Parenthetical Citation (Paraphrase)
(Author, Date), e.g.: The Pocket Oxford English Dictionary defines a parallelogram as a shape with. . . (Waite, 2012).
.
Remember! According to APA Style, it is not required to provide a page number when paraphrasing, only the last name(s) of the author(s), and the year of publication. However, a page number can be included if it would help interested readers to find the relevant section in the resource being cited. See section 8.23 of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (the Publication Manual).
.
Parenthetical Citation (Direct Quotation)
(Author, Date, Page number), e.g.: In the Pocket Oxford English Dictionary, a parallelogram is defined as, “a plane figure with four straight sides and opposite sides parallel” (Waite, 2012, p. 546).
Narrative Citation (Paraphrase)
Author (Date), e.g.: In the Pocket Oxford English Dictionary, Waite provides a helpful mnemonic to remember the spelling of “parallel” (2012).
Narrative Citation (Direct Quotation)
Author (Date, Page number), e.g.: Waite reminds readers that, “parallel has a double l in the middle and a single l at the end” (2012, p. 654).
Dictionaries with Multiple Authors
.
Reference List Entry: Format (10.2-10.3)
Author, A. & Author, B. (Date). Title. Publisher. Retrieval date, from URL, if applicable.
Remember! In a reference list entry, up to 20 authors’ names can be listed.
.
Reference List Entry: Example
Stevens Curl, & J., Wilson, S. (2015). Oxford dictionary of architecture (3rd ed.). Oxford University Press.
.
Hint! To find the date of publication and the name of the publisher for a book, check the title page verso. This page contains all the publishing information, and is usually the second or third page in a book. It appears before any indexes or introductions to the book.
.
Parenthetical Citation (Paraphrase)
(Author, Date), or (Author & Author, Date), or (Author et al., Date) for dictionaries with three or more authors, e.g.: The Oxford Dictionary of Architecture defines feng shui as an ancient Chinese belief and practice that involves. . . (Stevens Curl & Wilson, 2015).
Parenthetical Citation (Direct Quotation)
(Author, Date, Page number), or (Author & Author, Date, Page number), or (Author et al., Date, Page number) for dictionaries with three or more authors, e.g.: The Oxford Dictionary of Architecture defines feng shui as “ancient Chinese beliefs (called geomancy) that vital currents present within the earth ca influence the quality of human life, and so should be taken into account when designing, orienting, and siting buildings” (Stevens Curl & Wilson, 2015, p. 277).
Narrative Citation (Paraphrase)
Author (Date), Author and Author (Date), or Author et al. (Date) for dictionaries with three or more authors, e.g.: In the Oxford Dictionary of Architecture, Stevens Curl and Wilson (2015) note that principles of C21 environmental design appear to support some of the principles of feng shui.
Narrative Citation (Direct Quotation)
Author (Date, Page number), Author and Author (Date, Page number), or Author et al. (Date, Page number) for dictionaries with three or more authors, e.g.: Stevens Curl and Wilson not that, “many aspects of C21 environmental design in the West would appear to support certain principles of feng shui” (2015, p. 273).
.
Remember! For in-text citations of works with two authors, list the last names of both authors. For works with three authors or more, list the last name of the first author followed by et al.
Sources
American Psychological Association. (2020). Publication manual of the American Psychological Association: The official guide to APA style. (7th ed.).
Dictionaries help us to understand key terms. Most people are familiar with defining dictionaries – the ones that give definitions of words, like the Oxford English Dictionary (OED). There are also bilingual or translation dictionaries, which are used to translate words or phrases from one language to another. Finally, there are specialized or technical dictionaries, which focus on one topic or field of study. These are useful for terms that are unique to a certain subject area. Dictionaries can be in print or electronic, and there are free online dictionaries.
In an APA Style citation, the author is the person or people, or the group responsible for creating the work. An author can be a single person, multiple people, a group like an institution or a government agency, or a combination of individuals and groups.
In an APA Style citation, the date refers to the date of publication.
In an APA Style in-text citation or reference list entry, the title refers to the name of the work being cited.
In an APA Style citation, the source refers to where the information was found. The source includes - but is not limited to - the names of publishers, URLs and DOIs.
URLs are persistent links to information on the Internet. URLs can be found in the address bar of the web browser.
APA Style is set of guidelines created by the American Psychological Association (the APA). These guidelines help writers, including students, to format written work and citations in a consistent way.
