You know when you’re reading a text in a book on your iPhone / iPad or even on a website and you’re faced with a unknown word? Is it written the right way? What does it mean?
In those cases, the iPhone won’t let you down. Not everyone knows, but iOS itself has a feature that allows you to see the meaning of a word not only in Portuguese, but in several languages. And all this with just one or two taps on the screen.
The dictionary function has been around for years on iOS, but not everyone knows or even remembers using it. But it is there, with easy and quick access.
There is no separate application to access the dictionary, everything is really built into the system. Below you will see how to configure it, as well as discovering two ways to access the meaning of a word directly on your iPhone or iPad.
Configure the dictionary
First of all, go on Settings ›General› Dictionary and select the languages ​​you want to access the dictionary. At first we suggest activating only the Portuguese language, to begin to become familiar with the function.
Through the search field (spotlight)
Grab your iPhone on the home screen with the application icons, and drag your middle finger down. You will then see the system search field. Type the word you want to know and, among so many Siri searches on the internet, you will also see the definition of the internal dictionary.
Directly in a text
If you are reading a text on iBooks (now Apple Books), a website, an email message or even a PDF document, you can learn more about the meaning of a specific word.
To do this, just touch it and select it, until the contextual menu appears with the option “Search“.
Tap this option and you will see the dictionary.
Some details
- Cannot see the meaning of selected phrases, only individual words
- There is a Portuguese-English dictionary that in many cases shows you the translation of that word
- In the Settings list there is an Apple-specific dictionary, which has terms like iCloud, iPad, iPhone, etc.
Check out these and other iPhone and iPad tips on our special page.
