Flip Dictionary

Book Description

You know what you want to say, but you can't think of the word. You can describe what you're thinking but you don't know the name for it. Flip Dictionary comes to the rescue!

Best-selling author Barbara Ann Kipfer has created a huge reference that offers cues and clue words to lead writers to the exact phrase or specific term they need. It goes beyond the standard reverse dictionary format to offer dozens of charts and tables, listing groups by subject (such as automobiles, clothing types, plants, tools, etc.)

For example: want to know the term for the curved wooden beams that form the ribs of a ship? Look in the alphabetical listing to find "ship, curved timbers forming rib of: futtock." Then look at the table of sailing terms to find the names of other parts of a ship, as well as types of ships.

Flip Dictionary is an excellent reference for everyone. Writers of fiction and non-fiction will use it to find that elusive word they need, and word lovers will find it an entertaining book to simply sit and browse through. Crossword puzzlers will also find it invaluable. An indispensable desk reference, as necessary as a dictionary or thesaurus, but a whole lot more fun.

Customer Reviews:

A Must-Have For All Aspiring Writers.......2007-10-18

I keep the Flip Dictionary right within my reach whenever I'm writing, along with my dictionaries and thesaurus.
The Flip Dictionary is a great source of information if you're looking for just the right word to use. It should be on every writers' book shelf.

Redundant.......2007-07-13

There is nothing much helpful here. The Reader's Digest Reverse Dictionary has been around much longer, and provides better definitions. This has a few more modern words, but most of them are either too obscure, or too well known on the other hand, to be useful in writing.

The Best Word Book We've Found To Date.......2007-06-08

My wife an I use this book all the time, we've even bought more as gifts for other friends of ours that write- it is very helpful for choosing colorful words rather than the daily mundane.

If you like to write and love words, this is a must have!

Hope you enjoy it like we do

John & Lily

EXCELLENT REFERENCE BOOK!.......2006-06-27

I received this book as a gift and do not know how I ever wrote without this tool. I write instruction manuals and was cursed (and influenced) by my English professor to never use a thesaurus because it is not an absolute synonym replacement. HUH? With carrying this baggage around for many years, I am picky about colloquial expression, slang and word-find reference books. This is an EXCELLENT reference book with an outstanding index for looking up the exact word you need. - JoJo Canton

Great buy for anyone who uses words!.......2005-10-15

I'm a writer and an English tutor, so I use this a lot! I'm trying to get my boss to buy a few for us tutors, since so many of our students are english second language. Great for people like me whose idea of specific is "the thing that does the stuff on the doohicky."

Kaplan French Verb Flashcards Flip-O-Matic

Average customer rating:

Not Good

Kaplan French Verb Flashcards Flip-O-Matic
Kaplan
Manufacturer: Kaplan Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Dictionaries & Thesauruses | Reference | Subjects | Books

General | Foreign Languages | Reference | Subjects | Books

General | Reference | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

ASIN: 0743271424

Book Description

Flip your way to better French usage!

KaplanÂ¹s French Verb Flashcards Flip-O-Matic includes more than 350 verbs, all fully conjugated and defined. Conveniently designed in a handy flashcard format, French Verb Flashcards Flip-O-Matic is guaranteed to make learning French verbs quick, easy, and fun! Plus itÂ¹s the perfect size to take anywhere.

Customer Reviews:

Not Good.......2007-07-24

I suppose if you already know the everyday verbs like to be, to listen, to make, to go etc and now want to know the French for verbs like to purr (as in a cat) then this book is for you. Otherwise it is completely useless! It is also a bit misleading to call it flashcards when it is in fact a book and so very hard to use as flashcards. If you can buy something else

Kaplan Spanish Verb Flashcards Flip-O-Matic

Average customer rating:

Flashcards?
Much more advanced than I thought
Not what I expected
A good learning tool. . . .

Kaplan Spanish Verb Flashcards Flip-O-Matic
Kaplan
Manufacturer: Kaplan Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Dictionaries & Thesauruses | Reference | Subjects | Books

General | Foreign Languages | Reference | Subjects | Books

General | Reference | Subjects | Books

ASIN: 0743260376

Book Description

Flip your way to better Spanish usage!

Kaplan's Spanish Verb Flashcards Flip-O-Matic includes more than 350 verbs, all fully conjugated and defined. Conveniently designed in a handy flashcard format, Spanish Verb Flashcards Flip-O-Matic is guaranteed to make learning Spanish verbs quick, easy, and fun! Plus, it's the perfect size to take anywhere.

Customer Reviews:

Flashcards?.......2007-03-23

These were anything but flashcards. It is page after page of conjugated verbs in tiny print. I returned mine (at my expense). Very disappointing.

Much more advanced than I thought.......2005-07-28

To call Flip-O-Matic "flashcards," gave me the idea they were designed for beginners, like myself. This "book" is not really "cards" at all. The word and definition are one side of the "page," and *all* of the verb forms are on the other side (in order). It's a ton of information, that I'm not ready for yet.

Not what I expected.......2005-07-19

I do not like these "flash cards" at all. I wanted to use them to help learn the spanish verb tenses as well as the spanish verb definitions in a flash card style. This book can not be used to learn the definitions in a flash card format because the english definition is on the same page as the spanish verb. Also, all the verb formats for each verb are on the same page. There were also errors in the very beginning of the book which make me hesitant to trust the rest of the book. I think the book 501 Spanish Verbs by Christopher and Theodore Kendris is much more helpful. Do not waste your money on this book invest in 501 Spanish Verb and buy actual flash cards if you want them. Spanish Before You Know It by Transparent Language is a good CD-Rom flash card program for your computer. I just got it in the mail and love it, apparently there is a deluxe version available as well. It works for MAC and WIN.

A good learning tool. . . ........2005-05-21

The Spanish Verb Flashcards Flip-O-Matic is similar to the Spanish Vocabulary Flashcards Flip-O-Matic. If you like using flashcards to learn, you'll like this book. You can find flashcards on the Internet, but this is more convenient without the loose papers to lose. It's also easy to carry around to study and "no batteries required."

The Verb Flip-O-Matic has 350 verbs, but high-frequency verbs like HABLAR, COMER, and VIVIR are not included.

On one-side of each page, you'll find the verb, the definition, and an example of its use in a sentence. The definition of the verb is for its most common use. On the flip side or back page, you'll find the conjugated form of the verb, e.g., indictive, imperative, and subjunctive. The layout for the conjugated form is similar to what you find in the "501 Spanish Verb" book; but not as detailed. The Flip-O-Matic is no substitute for the "501 Spanish Verb" book.

I deducted one-star because I would have preferred the definition of the verb be on the flip side. There is also no pronunciation guide so you'll need a good dictionary to know how to correctly say the verb.

Kaplan Spanish Vocabulary Flashcards Flip-O-Matic (Kaplan Test Prep and Admissions)

Average customer rating:

A good learning tool to build your vocabulary. . .

Kaplan Spanish Vocabulary Flashcards Flip-O-Matic (Kaplan Test Prep and Admissions)
Kaplan
Manufacturer: Kaplan Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Dictionaries & Thesauruses | Reference | Subjects | Books

General | Foreign Languages | Reference | Subjects | Books

ASIN: 0743260384

Book Description

Flip your way to a better Spanish vocabulary!

Kaplan's Spanish Vocabulary Flashcards Flip-O-Matic includes more than 360 vocabulary words that are used in everyday conversational speech an appear often on tests. Conveniently designed in a handy flashcard format, Spanish Vocabulary Flashcards Flip-O-Matic is guaranteed to make learning Spanish vocabulary quick, easy, and fun! Plus, it's the perfect size to take anywhere.

Customer Reviews:

A good learning tool to build your vocabulary. . ........2005-05-20

While taking Spanish classes, the lessons have been turning toward conversational Spanish. My BIGGEST weakness in Spanish conversation is that I don't know enough words to converse in Spanish. I purchased the Flip-O-Matic cards to help build my Spanish vocabulary.

I like using flashcards to learn. When I was in grade school, I used flashcards to learn math. You can find similar Spanish flashcards on the Internet, but the Flip-O-Matic is more convenient and bound so no loose papers to lose. The Flip-O-Matic is also small enough to use anywhere, e.g., on the bus or walking around the park.

The Flip-O-Matic has 360 frequently used words and verbs. The words are shown used in a sentence. Only the most common definition of the word is given.

The only real downside that I've found is that I have to consult my Spanish dictionary (I use the Velazquez Spanish English Dictionary) to know how to pronounce the word. It would have been nice if the book had included a pronunciation guide. I ended up writing in the pronunciation in the book.

Average customer rating:

30% of this book is extremely useful--the rest, useless
Excellent resource for the word hungry
Actually fun to flip through
Do we really need this?
A Must-Have for Every Type of Writer

Writer's Digest Flip Dictionary
Barbara Ann Kipfer
Manufacturer: Writers Digest Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

English (All) | Dictionaries & Thesauruses | Reference | Subjects | Books

English (British) | Dictionaries & Thesauruses | Reference | Subjects | Books

General | Dictionaries & Thesauruses | Reference | Subjects | Books

Synonyms & Antonyms | Dictionaries & Thesauruses | Reference | Subjects | Books

Thesauruses | Dictionaries & Thesauruses | Reference | Subjects | Books

General | Words & Language | Reference | Subjects | Books

Reference | Words & Language | Reference | Subjects | Books

General | Writing | Reference | Subjects | Books

Writing Skills | Writing | Reference | Subjects | Books

General | Foreign Languages | Reference | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

The Plot Thickens: 8 Ways to Bring Fiction to Life

ASIN: 0898799767

Amazon.com

"Omit needless words," intone Strunk and White in The Elements of Style; "use definite, specific, concrete language." In order to use the best word for the job, though, you have to know it. The Flip Dictionary is full of words you may have forgotten and words you never knew, all accessed by their meaning. Look up "mounds and hills, with," and you will find tumulus. Search "the ropes connecting the harness and the canopy of a parachute," and you'll find shrouds. There's no need to say "lowest point in orbit" when you can say perigee, or "lowest deck of a ship" when you can say orlop. We don't know when we'd ever find a chance to use the word tomally, but we like knowing the one word out there that means "lobster liver." And, oh, the lists! Of apples and art movements, beers and birding terms, constellations and clothes (including 47 kinds of shirt), fears and ferns. The same caveats apply as with the use of a thesaurus: some of the definitions are a bit off ("hater" is vague for misanthrope), others are rather informal (boner, for instance, to mean "error"), and still others are so specific that you will want to be sure that you truly have found the right word for the job. Great fun. --Jane Steinberg

Customer Reviews:

30% of this book is extremely useful--the rest, useless.......2002-09-02

As a fiction writer, I use this book often for two extremely helpful aspects:
1) The lists of different names for colors, kinds of fabrics, etc.
2) The thesauras-type entries contain some words that only particially mean the same thing. This in-exactness means that you find words that are closely related to the word you originally looked up; you receive a more comprehensive list of suggestions. (This feature is great for people who already know the exact definitions of words. Otherwise, I suggest a companion dictionary.)

The "flip dictionary" aspects of the book are useless. First, if you don't think the same way the author does, you might not be able to find the reverse entry at all. There are many different ways to word a definition. Second, what good are words that most likely your readers won't know? Take these entries for instance: "pivoting, capable of: trochoid;" and "larval form of certain bivalve mollusks: spat." Trochoid? Spat? In a short story about underwater exploration, if I must mention those things in that way, I'll stick to "able to pivot" and "clam larva." My readers will undoubtedly thank me for it.

I'd have to own a Roget's Super Thesaurus to be sure, but I highly suspect that it's a much better resource for writers.

Excellent resource for the word hungry.......2001-12-19

I chanced upon this eye-catching book at a large bookstore. The conspicuous tagline states: "For when you know what you want to say but can't think of the word." That sounded like familiar territory.

I bought it and have been using it countless of times. It really boosts one's writing.

Actually fun to flip through.......2001-10-11

This is a reverse dictionary with a lot of lists, charts, etc. Although it can be confusing to use, it is one of the best reference books I've seen for just flipping through. Lots of surprises and interesting facts tucked away in sidebars.

While there is plenty of words and good relationships, I found its organization a bit difficult to use when needing to rapidly find a word. Saying that, it's also the one most often on my desk and not in the bookshelf with the others.

Do we really need this?.......2001-08-07

This Flip Dictionary isn't something really new. And in some of the areas it covers, there are serious errors.

It's probably unfair to ask one author, working by herself, to give us a book on the quality of, say, Roget's International Thesaurus a volume of over 1300 pages published by Thomas Y. Crowell and prepared by a large professional team building up on 150 years of scholarship and research.

However, life isn't always "fair." When I write, I want to know that the information is comprehensive and reliable. I think Kipfer's book is a brave attempt and the design is contemporary and engaging. For my writing, I think I'll stick with time-proven Roget

A Must-Have for Every Type of Writer.......2001-08-03

You've got the perfect idea for your novel but you can't pinpoint the right word. Maybe you're going to diagnose your character with a deadly disease. But which one?

You have a particular phrase in your head but don't quite know the exact word. For instance, when you screw something until its flush with the surface, what's it called?

Whether you're looking for another word for "momentous" or hunting for tree-related terms, "The Writer's Digest Flip Dictionary" is a comprehensive guide no writer should be without.

Use this book to tighten up your writing. By targeting the correct word to use in your manuscript, you'll be able to create a more compelling short story or novel.

When searching for a word, you'll often come across a list of "Related Terms." Sample entries include:

* Doctor-Related Terms

* Gods and Godesses

* Herbs

* Legal Terms

* Marine Corps Ranks

* A Complete List of Rivers

* Types of Rock

* Summer Olympic Games

* Weights and Measures

* Types of Wrenches

With close to 700 pages of words, phrases and related terms, finding the perfect word for your writing couldn't be any easier. You can spend hours just flipping through this rich source of information.

Books:

Books Index

Books Home

Recommended Books