Cheng & Tsui Chinese Character Dictionary: A Guide to the 2000 Most Frequently-Used Characters.
Editor-in-chief Wang Huidi. Eds Fan Keyu, Gao Jiaying, and Wang Zhifang. Tr. Kong Jing.
Cheng & Tsui. 1999 [Federal Publications (S) Pte Ltd, 1998]. 510 pp. Paper.
The key to mastering the Chinese language is learning to write the Chinese characters, which is where learners often encounter difficulty. This dictionary is unique in that it goes beyond mere definitions of entries and pronunciation. Calligraphic features of Chinese characters are analyzed, illustrating how they are to be properly written. The volume contains the primary target vocabulary of 2000 characters required for primary facility in written Chinese as well as a number of helpful features, such as stroke number, phonetic, and pinyin indices. Characters are organized alphabetically and are printed in both Kai and Song script in two colors, making it easy to discern their appearance and structure. Basic meaning and examples of usage are given in English and Hanyu Pinyin.