Tools
of the Trade
I. Writing in a foreign language using
Microsoft Word
A. Creating accents in Microsoft Word
The fastest and easiest way to produce accents
in Word is by pressing the Ctrl key in combination with a diacritical
key, followed by the letter (lower or upper case) you wish to insert.
Here are some examples:
- é=Ctrl + ', e (accent aïgu)
- É=Ctrl + ', E
- à=Ctrl + `, a (accent grave)
- ù=Ctrl + `, u
- ê=Ctrl + ^, e (circonflex)
- ë=Ctrl + :, e (trema)
- ç=Ctrl + ,, c (cedilla)
Each of these key-combinations, and many others,
are indicated in the Symbol box, which can be found in the Insert
menu, click on Symbol. Be aware that this is a much more time-consuming
method for creating accents.
Note: Accents on upper-case letters in French are optional. For
example,
À Paris OR A
Paris.
B. Setting the Language
In the Tools menu, click on Language, then Set Language and choose
French (France) or Spanish (Spain-Modern Sort) when beginning your
document.
C. Spell Checking
In the Tools menu, click on Spelling and Grammar and under Dictionary
Language, choose Spanish (Spain-Modern Sort) or French (France)
to check a single word. Also, if you set the language of the document
to Spanish (Spain-Modern Sort)/French (France), Word will automatically
spell check your document in Spanish/French. Be aware that there
are limitations for how well this works; the spell checker will
give you several options amongst which you must choose the correct
term, so you may need to consult your grammar pages as well.
D. Using the thesaurus
In the Tools menu, click on Language, then Thesaurus. If you have
set the language, you will get the foreign lang options.
II. Online (FREE!) Foreign Language Dictionaries
and resources
There is a virtual wealth of free resources
available to anyone on the internet. Here are some of the most
user-friendly, student- and teacher-approved sites.
A. Dictionaries for Spanish and French
Word Reference
Lexicool
Search this site to find the best dictionary for the job. Good
translation split screen for French/Spanish and English.
Cambridge Dictionnary
All Words Dictionnary
Acronym Dico—Multilingual E-Translation Portal
B. French Resources
Grand Dictionnaire
This very complete French-English/English-French dico is sponsored
by the Canadian government. It is easy to navigate and read.
Lexicon of Greek stems for French vocabulary/Lexique
des radicaux grecs
You can run a search for Greek word roots on this site. These are
useful for understanding fields of vocabulary in literary texts and
for using discipline appropriate terms when writing in French Across
the Disciplines.
Lexicon for French across the Disciplines
French idiomatic expressions
C. French Grammar Reference
French Grammar
central: The ultimate resource
for students at all levels.
This is part of Tennesse Bob’s famous French links—a
site that contains almost everything you need or want on the French
web, plus lots of grammar and language practice links.
RealFrench: All kinds of grammar help including a
verb conjugator.
French-English Spelling Tricks
Summary of basic differences between English and French
D. Spanish and French Literature Sites:
LitGloss:This is a great resource for reading literature in the original Spanish,
French, or other language, even if your reading skills are shaky,
because it provides meanings in English for many, many terms. Just
run your mouse over words you don’t know and the English meaning
pops up. Interested in publishing your translation of a French or
Spanish work? Submit it to this site.
ARTFL Project: The University of Chicago's Project for American and French Research
on the Treasury of the French Language was created as a database
of words from written French. It now contains over 150 million words
ranging from the 17th to the 20th centuries. A great tool for French
scholars and researchers, as well as lovers of language.
Association des Bibliophiles Universels
An extensive collection of public domain French literature, in French.
C. MLA Style: Citation Differences for Texts
in French
When quoting in English, “punctuation is enclosed by quotation
marks.”
In contrast, in French the punctuation follows the
end quotation mark: “Il faut terminer la citation ainsi”.
Bibliography
Even if you just consulted web sources or if you have only one primary
source (i.e., a literary text you are writing about), you will need
a Works Cited page at the end of your essay.
“Notes” is the French equivalent and “Notas” or “Obras
citadas” is the Spanish equivalent of “Works Cited.” Always
use MLA style. Here are some Frequently Asked Questions about
MLA style: http://www.mla.org/style_faq.
For a user-friendly style sheet, consult Abel
Scribe, Ph.D.’s page at http://www.dothgrin.net/mlacrib.pdf.
