Using the dictionary to learn

Antimoon is very big on using a dictionary, especially a monolingual one. Others, like Krashen, claim that concentrating on form is not productive; one picks up words in context through extensive reading and listening.

I would like to hear from successful language learners on their dictionary use. Do you bother with the dictionary at all? If so, do you stop at some (or all) unknown words while reading--or mark them and look them up later? Do you write them down (or add to a program like SuperMemo) for review--or just keep looking them up until learned? And do you favor a monolingual dictionary (trying to "think in the language")--or use a bilingual dictionary for quicker understanding?

I don't know how successful I am, considering I am not yet fluent, but for living in the US and speaking English everyday, I feel my level of Italian is pretty good.

When reading, I stop at any word that hinders my comprehension - that doesn't necessarily mean every word. I do it, I think, the hard way. I look up the words until I remember. It seems to work for me. I prefer dictionary with example sentences and other translations - online bilingual dictionaries like wordreference.com are my favorites because they have sentences in the target language, so you can see how the word interacts with other words. I think I learn best by example and that is why I prefer this. When possible, consult a native though. Wordreference has some very nice forums that I like to read.

For someone like me who has learned a few languages (5) I have also learned that learning a new language successfully requires a combination of factors.

Just think of how many times you reach for the dictionary to check words in your first language.

No matter what Krashen says (his approach is controversial): Dictionaries and grammars are essential for the language learner.

Yet, exposure to the living language in real time situations is highly recommended. Immersion is the best.

yes, of course