Dictionnaire de français App Reviews

Overall the definitions look good but this app lacks a pronunciation key that should be in any complete ditionary. For native speakers this might not be a big problem, but because there are exceptions to French pronunciation rules, guidance for non-native speakers is essential.

This latest update fixes all of the previous problems and this app is now a fast, lean version of the paper dictionary - exactly what you would want it to be. This is a great reference tool for French speakers and wannabe French speakers. What a great world that we live in that not only can you carry around a definitive language dictionary on your phone, but it is only $5.99!

You always have to go back to square one to use this app (not continuous, not flowing). You have to type every word entry (no word links). This dictionary needs audio pronunciations that do not require internet access (because the internet can slow things down to a halt especially in a monopoly; thats why I havent bought the audio Larousse app which seems to lack the very same features Im talking about). This app needs something very important for all dictionary apps: a random word button -- which takes away the tediousness of learning a whole load of vocabulary and which also makes learning continuous and not boringly alphabetical. The fonts are tiny.

For example I didnt find "puce" in the sense of "computer chip".

Very good, but I wonder if the app is going to be updated?!

I expected to get the same accuracy and completeness that Larousse was used to provide. This app is not better than other free French dictionnary apps. No phonetic, no origin, missing definitions when there are more than one (example "sain"), difficult to navigate between words...

Ive always found an appropriate definition for the word I looked up, and Ive been using this app for a year. I find Larousse to be the best of the Fre-Fre or Fre-Eng applications. Ive tried others. Get both Larousses - theyre great! Some of the low-rating reviews on here must be made by people who either have a faulty download or dont know enough French to be ready for a Fr-Fr dico. I have had this app for about a year and love it. To answer the negative reviews below: * "sain" and "sain/saine" - theyre both on here and correctly defined. * "puce" - its sense as computer chip is on here. * crashes - old version hardly ever crashed; new version hasnt crashed once, yet. * etymologies - the new version has them. Sometimes you have to go to the root word to find it, but most dictionaries direct you to the root word, anyway. * audio - its on here. * word links - theyre on here, too. This dictionary has so many great features with expressions, synonyms, homonyms, and even quotes, that for its price it is a real deal. For my own Fre-Fre needs, this has provided everything, and at a great price! I write this review because I love my Larousse apps. Ive been using them for a full year. I have no connection to Larousse whatsoever.

Great hypertext function, huge vocabulary base, great examples-- its hard to ask for more. There is even an etymology section, a very welcome addition. For the price this is far better than other dictionaries. Such an improvement over (the virtually unusable) version 1.

Whenever I try to play the audio for a word on the iPad I keep getting a message saying audio playback failed! Needs to be fixed! Basically doesnt do what its advertised to do in that case.

Significant improvement over the first version. Definitions are (still) great. Now has hyperlinks so one can easily get definitions for words in other definitions, making exploration easier. Auto-completion of searches is also much improved. The main problem is the pronunciation, which is only via audio files. First, when Im connected to the internet these still fail to work. In any case, written pronunciation is better: its faster, it doesnt require an Internet connection, and one can easily use without disturbing others. Larousse, please fix this and Ill give you 5 stars! The actual definitions are the best on the iPhone.

This is an excellent monolingual dictionary, useful for language learners at at least an intermediate level. Search is much faster than with a paper dictionary. Much detailed information is provided for each word, including audio pronunciations of each word, and complete conjugations of all verbs. You can click on any word in a definition to get the definition of that word, and keep going this way, and then backtrack to the word you originally looked up. There is also a history of all recently looked up words which you can use for review. Note that this dictionary does not include the illustrations or the proper nouns from the paper Larousse. Also it frequently crashes, but can be quickly restarted when it does so.

I have long used this dictionary on my first generation iPod Touch. Suddenly the new version requires iOS 4.0 or better, so I cant use this app that I have purchased. Is there any reason for the limitation to iOS 4 ?

I think I can put away my Petit Larousse now! :) It is almost everything I need in a French dictionary. If one could look up idioms directly, it would be perfect.

This is a fantastic dictionary with a huge number of entries. Just be aware that the Larousse is French-French only and consequently best suited for advanced students of the language. In addition to the definitions, the Larousse provides idiomatic expressions (e.g. if you look up faire you will also find "sen faire," "se faire," etc., which is incredibly helpful), synonyms, usage notes (difficultés), word origins, and, where applicable, quotations containing the word youre looking up. Finding words is easy even if you dont know the exact spelling, as the app offers a list of possible matches as soon as you begin typing a few letters in the search field. A truly amazing plus is that this list will include reflexive forms, which can differ greatly in meaning, so once you look for facher, the dictionary will list se facher as a separate entry. For every verb, full conjugation tables in all tenses are also included. Whether youre reading Charlie Hebdo or Maupassant, you will find every word you need here. If you dont, chances are its either misspelled in your source or a recent neologism. Internet access is required for the pronunciations, but if you are at the level where a monolingual dictionary is useful to you, chances are you no longer need them all that often. All other features are available off-line. An incredibly deep resource for only a few bucks more than your average app.

why?

I just downloaded the new version today. The interface gets stuck in the portrait mode, leaving content off the right side of the screen. Keyboard is vertical and sideway, blocking the dictionary. These are serious bugs. It also crashed several times within 15 minutes. If you are, like me, using iPad 2 with iOS 6, do not update to this version. It is NOT usable. I hope Larrouse will have these problems fixed as soon as possible. The low rating is for the bugs of the new version. I have not used the dictionary to rate its content. So far, I think it is quite good. I like the audio for the pronunciation. Itd be great if the IPA is included. Wayne

The app is not usable - it gets stuck in portrait mode and does not want to turn.

Gets stuck in portrait mode displaying only half the screen. I am amazed that Larousse would release an update without testing it.

Ive used the dictionary for about six months and I was happy with it until last update, which renders the dictionary unusable. The app is stuck in portrait mode with half of the app outside the visible area, just like other reviews mentioned. DO NOT BUY OR UPDATE until it gets fixed.

How can you guys destroy a perfect dictionary with this buggy update? The brand Larousse means a lot either for French speakers worldwide or folks who learn this language. So, fix those bugs asap.