ESL Dictonaries

Based on the internationally renowned COBUILD language program, the HarperCollins Beginner's ESL Dictionary offers 90 percent of the words spoken and written in the English language.

• ISBN13: 9780071478939
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.

Shape up your English with thousands of idioms

Whether you are a learner of English who is having difficulty understanding expressions in everyday speech or a native speaker who wants to expand your written or spoken range, you need a comprehensive reference for idioms, common phrases, and sayings of American English. McGraw-Hill's American Idioms Dictionary shows you the ropes of English and helps you:

• Expand your English-speaking abilities with these 14,000-plus expressions, proverbs, and common sayings, listed alphabetically
• Use American idioms correctly by following the many helpful examples
• Easily find the right phrase by one of its key words

Some examples of the colorful English language, as spoken by Americans:

at peace relaxed and happy
every trick in the book every deceptive method known
Johnny-on-the-spot someone who is in the right place at the right time
make a killing to have a great success, especially in making money
nine-to-five job a job with normal daytime hours
scream bloody murder to complain bitterly
take a powder to leave; to leave town

Adapted from the popular American Heritage Idioms Dictionary, the AH Dictionary of Idioms for Students of English provides clear, practical information on the most useful idiomatic expressions, phrasal verbs, figures of speech, and common proverbs in American English. Each entry is defined and has a sample sentence showing how the idioms are used in context.

• Full grammatical information in the text shows students of American English how to use the idioms correctly.
• Grammar usage markings identify where certain expressions appear most frequently.
• A pronunciation guide helps students practice

• ISBN13: 9780071461085
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.

For the 411 on American slang, this guidebook is the top banana

From "head trip" to "foot in mouth," American Slang Dictionary gives you the complete definitions of thousands of uniquely American words and phrases, ranging from golden oldies such as "catch some rays" and "take the fifth" to more up-to-the-minute coinages like Wall Street's "jonx," the Internet's "ping," and the gangsta's favorite, "shizzle."

Inside you'll find more than 12,000 words and expressions from a wide variety of sources, including gangsta rap, the blogosphere, and the U.S. prison system. In a New York minute, you'll be down with the colloquialisms, vulgarities, and substandard English that make everyday interactions in contemporary American life so colorful.

BSOD or blue screen of death the blue computer screen that appears after a programming or operational error
crunk wild; crazy; out of control
kvetch to complain
left-handed monkey wrench a nonexistent tool
word of mouse a message spread by e-mail

The American Heritage English as a Second Language Dictionary is the first of its kind to be based on one of the most respected and authoritative American language dictionaries available. Specially designed to suit the needs of ESL students, this resource is a necessity for any student of English. The dictionary provides the tools students need to learn and use American English effectively.

The 411 on the latest American slang

This up-to-date dictionary presents you with 2,100 entries including colorful words and phrases from television and movies, as well as the streets and campuses.