[INDOLOGY] HDICT – A Free & Libre Offline Dictionary Reader

[Dhaval Patel]

Dear Colleagues,

I am pleased to introduce *HDICT*, a free and libre *iOS* dictionary reader
app, designed for scholars who work deeply with dictionaries.

Available on the App Store:
https://apps.apple.com/in/app/hdict/id6759493062

Note - If you are on an android phone, and would like to test the app,
kindly let me know off list.
Why HDICT?

Research often requires consulting multiple dictionaries across languages
and traditions—sometimes in environments where stable internet access is
not guaranteed. *HDICT* is built precisely for this use case.
📚 Offline, Open & Flexible

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   *Completely free and libre*
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   *Offline storage* of your dictionaries - *No limits* as to the number of
   dictionaries you can add.
   -

   Supports both *StarDict* and *dictd* file formats
   -

   No subscription model, no lock-in

Bring your preferred Sanskrit, Prakrit, Pali, Tamil, or Indo-European
lexica and work entirely offline.
🔎 Research-Oriented SearchMulti-Dictionary Search

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   View results from multiple dictionaries *simultaneously*
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   Clean *tabbed interface* for parallel comparison
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   Close individual tabs to maintain a focused workspace

Search Inside Definitions

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   Not just headwords — *search inside full definitions*
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   Particularly useful for tracing citations, gloss traditions, and
   semantic fields

Fast Lookups

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   Optimized queries for near-instant results, even with large lexica

📖 Deep Text ExplorationTap-on-Meaning

Every word inside a definition is interactive.
Tap any word to instantly look it up.
Nested Lookups

New lookups open in a full-width bottom popup, allowing you to explore
semantic chains without losing your place in the original entry.
Unicode Native

Full Unicode support ensures smooth handling of:

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   Devanāgarī
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   IAST
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   English
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   and any other script

🗂️ Flashcards & Pedagogy

For those teaching or revising:

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   *Truly random quizzes* (10 random words from selected dictionaries)
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   Mark answers as correct/incorrect even during review
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   Dedicated *score history* to track long-term progress

🎨 Customizable Scholarly Environment

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   Premium modern design with subtle micro-animations
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   Full RGB theme control (background, headings, body text)
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   Adjustable global font sizing



HDICT is designed to be a practical tool for scholars who value openness,
portability, and serious lexical work.

If you maintain or curate dictionaries in StarDict or dictd formats, HDICT
offers a powerful, research-focused way to access them on mobile
devices—fully offline.

I would be grateful for your valuable feedback and suggestions.

If you have a bug to report or a feature request, please feel free to open
an issue at  https://github.com/drdhaval2785/hdict/issues/new or send an
email to drdhaval2785 at gmail.com.

If you are looking for dictionaries to use with the application, you may
choose from a large list of Indologic dictionaries at
https://github.com/indic-dict/stardict-index/blob/master/dictionaryIndices.md
for starters. You may choose any other stardict / dictd dictionary of your
interest.

With best regards,

Dr. Dhaval Patel, I.A.S.
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