6 Best ASL Sign Language Dictionaries For Families That Grow With You
The right ASL dictionary grows with your family. We review 6 top picks that support learners from their first signs to fluent, complex conversations.
Your child asks, "How do you sign ‘butterfly’?" and you quickly search on your phone. But the video is too fast, the signer is unclear, and suddenly a simple moment of curiosity becomes a frustrating dead end. Choosing the right American Sign Language (ASL) dictionary for your family is about more than just looking up words; it’s about finding a guide that makes learning feel like an adventure at every age.
Why the Right ASL Dictionary Matters for Kids
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Handing a five-year-old a dense, text-heavy dictionary is like giving them a car manual to learn how to ride a bike. It’s overwhelming, irrelevant, and misses the point entirely. The right dictionary is a learning tool, not just a reference book. It should invite a child in, matching their cognitive ability and their way of seeing the world.
For young children, learning is visual, contextual, and playful. They need to see signs connected to pictures, stories, and real-life situations. As they grow into elementary school, they can handle more structure—like alphabetical order and written definitions—but they still need clear visuals and engaging content to hold their interest. A dictionary that’s too simple will be quickly outgrown, while one that’s too advanced will gather dust.
The key is to think of your ASL resources as a progression. You’re not looking for the one perfect dictionary that will last a lifetime. Instead, you’re curating a small library of tools that will support your child as they move from signing their first word to having their first conversation. This approach respects your child’s development and makes your investment in their learning journey smart and effective.
Signing Time! Dictionary for Young Learners
When you’re starting with a toddler or preschooler, you’re not teaching a formal language lesson; you’re playing and communicating. The world of a three-year-old revolves around concepts like "more," "eat," "sleep," and "play." The Signing Time! series and its corresponding online dictionary understand this world perfectly.
This resource is built on music, repetition, and the sight of other children signing. It’s less a traditional A-to-Z dictionary and more of a visual songbook for language. For children in the 1-5 age range, this is the gold standard. It embeds signs in a joyful, memorable context, which is precisely how pre-readers acquire language.
The Signing Time! dictionary is a family activity. It encourages parents and children to learn side-by-side, turning screen time into active, engaged connection. It builds a foundational vocabulary around a child’s daily life, making signing a natural and functional part of your family’s communication from day one.
Gallaudet Children’s Dictionary for Grade School
Once your child starts reading and organizing their world in more complex ways, their questions change. They move from "What’s the sign for ‘ball’?" to "How do you sign ‘planet’?" This is the perfect moment to introduce the Gallaudet Children’s Dictionary of American Sign Language.
This beautifully illustrated print dictionary is a fantastic bridge for kids aged 6-10. It presents over 1,000 signs with clear, charming drawings of children signing, accompanied by descriptions and sample sentences. It empowers kids to look up words independently, a critical skill for any kind of learning. The physical book format also provides a focused, screen-free experience that many families appreciate.
Think of this as your child’s "first real dictionary." It validates their growing intellect and curiosity, showing them that ASL is a rich, structured language worthy of a reference book just like their spoken language. It’s a staple for the elementary school bookshelf that will see years of use for homework, storytelling, and satisfying a growing curiosity about the world.
The ASL App for On-the-Go Family Practice
You’re at the zoo, and your child wants to know the sign for "penguin." You’re in the car, and a question about signing "traffic" comes up. For these spontaneous learning moments, a mobile tool is unbeatable, and The ASL App is a fantastic choice for the whole family.
Featuring a diverse cast of native Deaf signers, this app provides high-quality video clips that show the nuance and facial expressions essential to authentic ASL. Many apps offer features like slow-motion playback, which is incredibly helpful for breaking down the mechanics of a new sign. Its on-demand nature makes it the perfect companion for families with school-aged kids and teens.
This app isn’t a curriculum, but rather a powerful reinforcement tool. It’s the modern equivalent of flashcards, available anytime, anywhere. Use it to quickly resolve a debate over a sign, review vocabulary before an ASL club meeting, or simply turn five minutes of waiting in line into a fun, productive language game.
SigningSavvy for School-Aged Kids and Parents
As your child’s ASL journey deepens, perhaps through a class at school or a commitment to family fluency, their needs become more sophisticated. They’re moving beyond single words and into sentence structure. SigningSavvy is a comprehensive online video dictionary that grows with this next stage of learning, making it ideal for tweens, teens, and the parents trying to keep up.
SigningSavvy’s strength lies in its depth. It not only shows you the sign for a word but often provides multiple variations used in different regions or contexts. Crucially, it has features that allow you to build and watch entire sentences being signed. This is a game-changer for understanding how ASL grammar works, as it’s very different from English.
This resource is an excellent homework helper and a powerful tool for parents who want to support their child’s formal ASL education. When your 12-year-old is working on a presentation for their ASL class, SigningSavvy provides the reliable, detailed information they need to sign with confidence and accuracy.
Handspeak.com for Independent Teen Learners
There comes a point when a learner’s motivation shifts from external (a family activity, a school class) to internal. A teenager who has found a genuine passion for ASL needs a resource that treats the language with academic respect. Handspeak.com is that resource.
Handspeak offers a clean, scholarly approach to ASL. It functions as a robust dictionary but also provides extensive information on the linguistic aspects of the language, including grammar, etymology, and cultural nuances. The site’s straightforward, information-rich design is perfect for the high school or college student who is engaged in focused, independent study.
This is the tool that empowers a teen to take full ownership of their learning. They can explore the history behind a sign, understand the subtle differences between synonyms, and begin to grasp the complex structure of the language. It’s a resource that supports the transition from a casual learner to a serious student of ASL.
ASL Handshape Dictionary for Advanced Study
For the truly dedicated learner, a profound shift happens. They stop thinking, "What’s the sign for this English word?" and start thinking in the patterns and structures of ASL itself. The ultimate tool for this stage is an ASL Handshape Dictionary.
Unlike every other dictionary, this type is not organized alphabetically. Instead, it’s organized by the core component of a sign: the handshape. A learner can look up the "5" handshape, for example, and see dozens of signs that are formed with a flat, open palm. This fundamentally changes how one sees and remembers vocabulary.
This is an advanced tool for a high school student considering becoming an interpreter, a family member deeply committed to fluency, or anyone fascinated by linguistics. Using a handshape dictionary builds a deep, intuitive understanding of ASL’s phonology and structure. It’s not a starting point, but for the learner who has mastered the basics, it’s an incredible key to unlocking a higher level of fluency.
Beyond Dictionaries: Finding Your ASL Community
Let’s be clear: no dictionary, app, or website can replace human interaction. A dictionary is a map, but the language itself lives and breathes in the people who use it. The single most important step you can take to support your family’s ASL journey is to connect with the Deaf community.
Look for opportunities to engage with ASL in the real world. This could mean attending a Deaf festival, finding a "Deaf Coffee" chat in your town, or going to a library’s signed story time. These experiences provide invaluable context, cultural understanding, and the chance to see the language used naturally and fluidly.
Encourage your child to see ASL not just as a skill to be learned, but as a key to connecting with people. The goal of learning any language is communication and community. Your dictionaries are essential tools for the journey, but always remember that the destination is connection.
From playful first signs with your toddler to your teen’s deep dive into linguistics, the right resources make all the difference. By matching the tool to your child’s developmental stage, you can foster a lifelong love of language and connection. The journey is long, but with the right guides, every step is a rewarding one.