A Phrase and Sentence Dictionary of Spoken Russian: Russian-English, English-Russian

I am a begginner learner (but serious) on Russian. Up to now, I found almost all the words I've looked for. Even if it is small (about 11,000 words, that's why I gave it only 4 starts) the idea of presenting words in the context they are used is excellent and this book shall be useful for years of learning. I will certainly use it even when my Russian improves. I would say it is more than a dictionary, but a valuable study resource.

This Phrase and Sentence Dictionary, the Kenneth Katzner Russian dictionary, and possibly the Frequency Dictionary are the three most useful books for the practical learning of Russian for everyday use. Living in the U.S., I can glean from this book that key phrase or sentence to say precisely what I want to my Russian client. It's seeing the word in context that makes the book valuable and unique. (There happens to be a Spanish equivalent, for those who are interested.) Beyond useful, this dictionary is often even entertaining! Be warned: The book appears with both sewn and glued spines. Of course the sewn version will last far longer.

I browsed Russian-English dictionaries for a couple of weeks before deciding on this one. This one had a few features that made it the obvious choice. Most importantly, rather than just being a list of words, this is indeed a sentence and phrase dictionary in the sense that you can look up a word and see it used in several example sentences. Seeing the words in context sure helps a lot in my view. Also, the appendecies I found to be very valuable. Lists of translations of well-known cities, countries, and nationalities are given. I found that seeing familar words (such as cities) helps me understand the logic of the alphabet and how to use the sounds properly. Lists of given names and foods also help bring this language to life, making it more than just scholorly. The downfalls are insignificant in comparison. But, it's a few decades old, and it goes without saying a lot has changed in Russia since the 1970's. That doesn't affect the language a whole lot, but appendices that aren't refering to SSR's would be helpful. A 2000 updated version of this very book would get my 5 stars, but I won't be too picky, since it's still helping me more than any other dictionary every will.