You’ll love your Longman Dictionary even more!

An ideal solution for a software which is unpleasant to use

by Mehdi Safavi | Jul 26, 2019 | Apps

The Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English 5th Edition (LDOCE 5) is probably the best dictionary for English learners. Unfortunately, the software version of the LDOCE is rather unpleasant to use. It is very slow and has problems with basic features like scrolling and copying text. In some versions, even the sound doesn’t work.

That’s where the LDOCE5 Viewer comes in handy— a fast, user-friendly alternative that will make you “want” to look up words! If you are like me and the horribly-designed Longman dictionary software drives you crazy, follow these steps now:

1. Install the Longman Dictionary software

To start with, make sure the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English (5th Edition) is already installed on your computer – you’ll need its database.

2. Download and install the LDOCE5 Viewer

The app is free and available for Windows, Mac, and Linux. Go to its creator’s website to download it now.

3. Set up the application

As you see in the images below (Windows version), setting up the LDOCE5 Viewer is more than easy. The process can take some time (3-10 minutes) of course, but it is definitely worth the wait!

Run the downloaded software: ldoce5viewer-setup

Choose a destination for installing the software on your computer.

Click Finish to launch the software for the first time.

Click on “Yes” and grab a coffee to drink or play an online game! It’s an automatic process and you shouldn’t turn off the computer while the dictionary database is being indexed.

The is what the process looks like. Don’t panic! Keep waiting….

Now the index is successfully created and your new software has full access to all the definitions and multimedia files of your Longman Dictionary.

Congratulations! You now have built your own Longman dictionary which is even better than the original Longman dictionary! From now on, open “LDOCE5 Viewer” to look up words instead of the Longman dictionary you have installed on your computer.

About the Author

CEO and Co-founder of Juice Academy

Mehdi Safavi is a Cambridge certified English teacher (CELTA Grade A), IDP-trained IELTS expert, Sussex Downs College TESOL with 17+ years of teaching & teacher training experience. More about him →