A Supplementary Russian-English Dictionary

As an advanced learner of Russian, I have used ASRED2 as a supplement to Kenneth Katzner's dictionary with excellent results. I suspect it would also serve well as a supplement to most other Russian-English dictionaries. It helps me out especially when I am reading news articles in Russian and other contemporary texts, and also when watching Russian language TV shows and listening to Russian speakers.

Katzner and the other dictionaries don't have translations for certain words, or they don't give you all of the contemporary usages. ASRED2 covers a vast number of these types of definitions and usages. It also includes definitions and full versions of many acronyms, which are widely used in Russian news. In addition, ASRED2 unabashedly contains many vulgar definitions and usages. I can't vouch for the accuracy of all of these definitions and usages, but I know some of them are widely used and they are often amusing to read. Of course, you generally won't find these words and usages in most Russian-English dictionaries.

When I watch Russian TV or listen to Russian speakers, I often hear words that are commonly used in Russian speech but to my surprise are either not defined at all, or are not defined with their common contemporary usage in Katzner, Ozhegov or other Russian-English dictionaries. It can be very frustrating. ASRED2 is definitely the answer and it delivers quite well. I have rarely been disappointed.

In addition to using ASRED2 for translating, you can also benefit just by reading through the pages. I usually don't enjoy reading dictionaries. But I have often found myself reading through ASRED2 and picking up some new vocabulary and illuminating some usages I did not previously understand.

ASRED2 is not for beginners, and it may not be for intermediate learners of Russian either. You will know when you need it, because you will begin to find that the dictionary you have been using leaves you frustrated on a fairly regular basis. If you find yourself in that situation, ASRED2 is the answer.