This experimental case study examined how online dictionaries affect the translation quality of collocations in literary texts among 100 Bachelor of Arts in English students at King Khalid University. Participants were randomly assigned to a control group that used only hard-copy dictionaries and an experimental group that consulted two prominent online dictionaries—Reverso and Almaany. Both groups translated an Arabic literary passage containing 20 collocations into English, covering four types: verb + noun, noun + adjective, verb + preposition + noun, and noun + noun. Comparative analysis of the resulting translations evaluated the accuracy and appropriateness of each collocation type and gauged students’ overall collocation competence.
Results showed that translations of verb + noun, noun + adjective, and verb + preposition + noun collocations depended heavily on access to online dictionaries, underscoring the difficulty these patterns pose for learners without digital support. The findings supply empirical evidence that online dictionaries can enhance collocation-related translation quality, while also indicating that robust collocation competence remains essential for high-quality output. The study recommends further research on the long-term effects of electronic dictionaries, the translation of additional literary genres, and samples encompassing wider proficiency ranges to confirm and extend these insights.