I have a dictionary.xml it has words and the meaning.

I am writing xsl file.it will have a word stated.
The stylesheet searches the dictionary.xml to see if the word exists.

my question is,should I use variable or parameter for searching a xml file?

I really wouldn't like to say. You haven't provided examples of what you are trying to produce, or what your input looks like. I'm also not sure of what you mean by 'using' a variable or parameter to search an XML file.

/- Sam Judson : Wrox Technical Editor -/

Based on the standards on my job, parameters are exclusively provided externally (Service Bus) each time the XSLT is executed.

Variables on the other hand are defined within the XSLT itself and are used as part of the transformation rules. But they don't change.

But samjudson is correct, can't do much without a sample of your XML file input and what you want your desired output to look like.