Kenkyusha's New Japanese-English Dictionary
Japanese-English Dictionary published by Kenkyūsha
First published in 1918, Kenkyusha's New Japanese-English Dictionary (新和英大辞典, Shin wa-ei daijiten) has long been the largest and most authoritative Japanese-English dictionary. Translators, scholars, and specialists who use the Japanese language affectionately refer to this dictionary as the Green Goddess or GG because of its distinctive dark-green cover.
The fifth edition, published in 2003, is a volume with almost 3,000 pages; it contains about 480,000 entries (including 130,000 Japanese headwords, 100,000 compound words, and 250,000 example phrases and sentences), nearly all of which are accompanied by English translations. The editors in chief of the fifth edition are Toshiro Watanabe, Edmund R. Skrzypczak, and Paul Snowden.
Besides the print edition, the dictionary is also available on CD-ROM (EPWING format), online, and in electronic dictionary and iPhone versions. Electronic dictionaries that contain the fifth edition are generally flagship models. They include the Canon Wordtank G70, the Seiko SR-E10000 (the first electronic dictionary with GG) and SR-G10000, and the Casio "University Student" series (XD-D9800 in 2012) and "Professional" series (XD-D10000 in 2012). The Sharp PW-SB2, PW-SB3, PW-SB4 and PW-SB5 models also contain the full Kenkyusha dictionary. For both Casio and Sharp at least, the dictionary is also available on an SD or micro SD card that can be purchased separately for certain models.
There is also a companion English-Japanese dictionary, currently in its 6th edition, which contains 260,000 headwords.
Begin with the source’s own compact description: “Kenkyusha's New Japanese-English Dictionary” is japanese-English Dictionary published by Kenkyūsha. The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through Kenkyusha's, Japanese-English and Dictionary, not as a finished interpretation.
Why this record matters
The phrase “japanese-English Dictionary published by Kenkyūsha” supplies a clear boundary for inquiry. It also exposes the unanswered questions: who defined that boundary, when it became stable and which sources sit outside it.
The citation trail is more important than the brevity of the summary: it shows where individual claims can be examined in context. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jan 29, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q6389422. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 1918, 2003 and 2012.
A concise general-reference account can conceal disagreements about scope, terminology or the weight assigned to individual sources. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.
- Subject orientation
- Search vocabulary
- Locating named sources
The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Kenkyusha's New Japanese-English Dictionary”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Kenkyusha's New Japanese-English Dictionary primary sources, Kenkyusha's New Japanese-English Dictionary archive and Kenkyusha's research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Kenkyusha's New Japanese-English Dictionary”?
- Which institution is responsible for the underlying evidence?
- Which cited source is closest to the event, object or claim?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Kenkyusha's New Japanese-English Dictionary” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.