How Useful Are Bilingualized Dictionaries in Discriminating Between Near-Synonyms?

Abstract

This study investigates the usefulness of a bilingualized dictionary (BLD) against a monolingual one (MD) in a fill-in-the-blank test requiring the ability to discriminate between a set of near-synonyms. 156 participants, all English major undergraduates studying in Poland, were divided into two groups based on the type of dictionary they used. The study compared the two groups with respect to their test scores, learners’ prior receptive vocabulary knowledge, and task completion time. The experiment revealed the limitations of the BLD in this type of task, demonstrating that the dictionary was no more useful than the MD. While the scores were unaffected by dictionary type, they were significantly influenced by the learners’ receptive vocabulary size: the larger the size, the better the performance. The task completion time was not significantly affected by dictionary type, vocabulary size, or scores. The paper discusses learners’ errors and possible reasons for the limitations of the BLD.