Kuala Lumpur, 11 March 2010 - English language learning and teaching is made easier with the launch of the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary (8th edition). 

Oxford Fajar, a subsidiary of Oxford University Press, recently launched the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary (8^th edition) at the Residence of His Excellency the British High Commissioner, Boyd McCleary.

Vividly demonstrating how up to the minute this new dictionary is, the launch featured the vuvuzela now an officially recognised word in the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary (8th edition). The trumpet-like instrument, loved by South African football fans, makes a noise like an elephant. It will be heard loud and proud at the forthcoming 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa.

The High Commissioner said at the launch: "I feel this dictionary is a positive force for improving language learning and understanding."

The Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary is the "gold standard" for millions learning or teaching English around the world with more than 35 million copies sold over the past 70 years. That's more than one copy each and every minute.

This new edition of the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary is being introduced five years after the preceding 7^th edition. This 8^th edition has no less than 184,500 words, phrases and meanings including 1,000 plus new words and meanings.

So how has this edition been improved? Following the example of the dictionary's first editor A.S. Hornby who greatly valued students' input, Oxford University Press set up a world-wide research programme and invited students and teachers to explain the various challenges they faced both in teaching and learning English. As a result the new Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary (8^th edition) offers a host of new features. Practical help with writing is offered via a 32-page Oxford Writing Tutor and a special interactive tutor called Oxford iWriter, on the CD-ROM. The iWriter helps students plan, write and check their written work on screen.

An enhancement on the earlier Oxford 3000, is the Oxford 3000 plus which offers a series of vocabulary building tools - the Oxford 3000 keyword entries, the academic wordlist, Topic Collocation Boxes and synonym notes; which collectively provide the building blocks for expanding vocabulary to 7,500 words and more. Explaining Oxford 3000 plus, Joanna Turnbull, editor of the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary (8^th edition), says: "We believe that 3000 words is the right number for advanced level learners to master as basic vocabulary. By indicating which are the most common meanings of a word, and therefore the most likely to be met by students, we have made it even more useful."

Students' requests for additional thesaurus content have resulted in nearly 10,000 synonyms and antonyms. This dictionary boasts twice as many topics as the previous edition and it has more vocabulary than any other learners' dictionary.

"English is the international language of commerce, science and education. English is also one of the strong ties that bind Malaysia and the United Kingdom. Many Malaysians appreciate that now, perhaps more so than ever before, learning English is an essential step in their education and their professional development," said His Excellency Boyd McCleary. He continued: "Dictionaries such as this OALD are undoubtedly one of the most effective reference tools for students and teachers who seek to improve their understanding and use of the English language."

Oxford Fajar's Managing Director Sharmini Nagulan, added: "Students and teachers alike from 14 countries have been consulted in order to find out more about the many challenges of learning and teaching English. This has contributed to making the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary (8^th edition) to likely being the most useful advanced learner's dictionary ever published."

The Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary (8^th edition) has 1,000 new words and meanings reflecting our ever changing world with social networking, climate change and the X Factor all exerting an effect. Are you twittering? Do you tweet? Carbon credit, carbon footprint, carbon neutral, carbon offset, carbon trading and zero carbon are all now defined in the dictionary, as is food mile, the distance food has to be transported and the fuel consumed. Big box is the term for large out of town budget shops. Taking time to yourself is me-time but that might be tricky if you are cash-rich and time-poor. Having time to consider is having wriggle room, a confident and unusual person is out-there, a drawn out argument is a slugfest, and tremendous excitement might induce a head rush. And of course there's the aforementioned vuvuzela - the long plastic instrument much loved by South African football crowds.

The Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary (8^th edition) is available in all leading book stores nationwide priced at: Paperback - RM79.90; Paperback with CD-ROM - RM89.90; Hardback with CD-ROM - RM159.90.

For more information, contact Angeline David at 5629 4000 or visit www.oxfordfajar.com.my