There are two main ways to look up dictionaries, Pinyin and Radical.
Pinyin lexical search is a method to find words according to the pinyin of Chinese characters. First, determine the pinyin of the word to be searched, then find the page number corresponding to pinyin in the pinyin index of the dictionary, and then find the word in the page number corresponding to the page number.
Radical search method is a method to find words according to the radicals of Chinese characters. First, determine the radicals of the words to be searched, then find the page number corresponding to the radicals in the radical index of the dictionary, and then find the words in the pages corresponding to the page numbers.
The specific steps are as follows:
Determine the pronunciation or radical of the word to be searched.
Find the description of "Phonetic Sequence (Pinyin Search)" or "Radical Search" on the front cover or home page of the dictionary.
According to the description, find the description of "phonetic order (pinyin search)" or "radical search" in the dictionary text.
Just follow the instructions to find it.
It should be noted that different dictionaries may be slightly different, and the specific operation can refer to the description of the dictionary. In addition, some special Chinese characters or uncommon Chinese characters may need to be searched by other tools or methods.
The name of the first dictionary, Erya, defines the function of the dictionary. "Er" also means "near", "Ya" means "right" and "elegant in speech", that is, a standard language that conforms to the norms in pronunciation, vocabulary and grammar.
Erya means approaching and conforming to elegance, that is, explaining words and dialects in an elegant way to make them close to norms. Dictionaries in ancient China were all called word books, and it was not until the publication of Kangxi Dictionary that they were called dictionaries. The earliest dictionary in China is Erya, and the upper limit is not earlier than the Warring States period, because of the materials used in the book.
Some of them are from Chu Ci, Zhuangzi, Lv Chunqiu and other books, all of which are works of the Warring States Period. The lower limit of writing a book will not be later than the early years of the Western Han Dynasty, because Dr. Er Ya was already set up in Emperor Wen of Han Dynasty, and Er Ya Zhu, regarded as literature, appeared in Emperor Wu of Han Dynasty.