dictionaries: what's in a word?

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What is a dictionary?

Evaluating dictionaries

Selecting dictionaries

Using dictionaries

Recommended dictionaries


Dictionaries are used to define words; to verify spelling, syllabication, or pronunciation; to check on usage; or to determine the etymological history of a word. To some degree, they also standardize the language based on current usage.

Isn’t that a lot like an encyclopedia?

Dictionaries are about words, encyclopedias are about things.

Bopp and Smith (2001, p. 409)Landau (2001)

How do dictionaries differ?

Generally, dictionaries tend to be descriptive, reflecting how language is used in society, or prescriptive, advocating for “proper” academic usage.

Most modern dictionaries depict language as it is commonly used.

Dictionaries published throughout time can provide a fascinating road-map of the development of language. Dictionaries can even reflect political change.

Bopp and Smith (2001, p. 409)

Defining time in dictionaries

Landau (2001)

Scholars should be interested to know that dictionaries may be designed with different representations of time:

Diachronic (Historical)

Synchronic (One period of time)

Classifying dictionaries

Landau (2001)

Dictionaries can be classified according to linguist scholar Yakov Malkiel’s typology.

Range

Perspective

Presentation




Using dictionaries


Evaluation

When checking out printed dictionaries, evaluate their format, scope, authority, accuracy, and currency.

Internet sources are evaluated the same as printed.

Format

How is the dictionary arranged? Is it easy to use?

An unabridged dictionary contains between 300,000 and 600,000 entries or words.

An abridged (desk) dictionary should contain between 50,000 and 200,000 entries.

What other features are included?


Scope

The scope of a dictionary is stated in the introduction.

What does the dictionary really cover?

Authority

Author and reputation

Some of the most well known authoritative dictionary publishers are Merriam-Webster, Houghton Mifflin, Oxford University Press and Random House.


Accuracy

Spellingaeroplane vs. airplane

Definition

Useless definition

Evaluating: to evaluate


Currency

Is the dictionary current or up-to-date?

Slang terms- Bling

Technical jargon- Controlled vocabulary

Comparing Dictionaries

Pick a group of common words.

Compare the "treatment" the dictionaries has given them.


Dictionary.com

brief ly [breff-lee]⋅

–adverb 1. for a short duration: He stopped over briefly in Chicago. 2. in a few words: Let me explain briefly. 3. in a brief manner; quickly or brusquely: She nodded briefly and began to speak. Origin: 1250–1300; see BRIEF, -LY

Merriam-Webster Online

Main Entry:brief·ly Pronunciation: \ˈbrē-flē\ Function:adverb Date:14th century 1 a: in a brief way <briefly mentioned> b: in brief <the food, briefly, was awful>2: for a short time <briefly married>




Using dictionaries


Selecting a dictionary

1. Select the dictionary for the proper audience or collection

2. Types of dictionaries

3. Search strategies


Selecting an audience

The library users’ needs

Age and condition of existing dictionaries in the collection

Acquisitions budget

Consider this:


Selecting a dictionary – Types of dictionaries

Unabridged dictionaries

Bopp and Smith (2001, p. 414-415)


Abridged dictionaries



Etymological dictionaries



School-level dictionaries

Bopp and Smith (2001, p. 418-419)


Foreign-language/English-language dictionaries



Thesauri and usage guides

Bopp and Smith (2001, p. 422, 424)

Search Strategies

Internet dictionaries versus traditional dictionaries

Choosing the proper dictionaries to optimize the users’ needs

Buying a dictionary

Bopp and Smith (2001, p. 413-414)




Using dictionaries


How to use a dictionary - How to look up a word

Firstly, think of a word to look up.

Open the dictionary to the closest spelling of the word or your best guess.

Then you will either turn backwards or forward throughout the dictionary.

Guidewords are found at the top of either page.o The word on the left page is the first word found on that page.

o The word found on the right page is the last word on that page.

o This provides the range to guide you in finding the word.

Using a Dictionary (Library.thinkquest.org)Merriam-Webster Inc. (1988)

How to use a dictionary - A closer look at definitions

Can you decipher the different parts of the definition?A good dictionary should provide an exhaustive definition with the components that will be explained in the forthcoming slides.

dic tion ar y⋅ ⋅ ⋅

/ˈdɪkʃəˌnɛri/ [dik-shuh-ner-ee]

–noun, plural -ar ies.⋅

1. a book containing a selection of the words of a language, usually arranged alphabetically, giving information about their meanings, pronunciations, etymologies, inflected forms, etc., expressed in either the same or another language; lexicon; glossary: a dictionary of English; a Japanese-English dictionary.

Origin:

1520–30; < ML dictiōnārium, dictiōnārius < LL dictiōn- word (see diction ) + -ārium, -ārius –ary


Main entry





Origin:


The main entry is the word that you are looking for a definition. Some words have alternate or variant spellings.


Part of speech





Origin:


The part of speech justifies the word’s inclusion in the dictionary.


Pronunciation





Origin:


Indicated by / /Shows how to pronounce the word including variant pronunciations.


Plurals



–noun, plural -ar ies⋅ .


Origin:


Explains when plural changes word – such as y to iOr when noun is irregular


Order of sense





Origin:


Numbers indicate the first known “sense of the word.” This is to say number 1 was known before 2.However it does not mean that 2 was derived from 1.


Cross Reference





Origin:


Cross reference provides more information such as synonyms, cognate and inflection.


Miscellaneous

Etymology can be found between [ ]

Dates in parenthesis is the earliest recorded use in English.

“Obs” indicates a word is obsolete.

“Chiefly” indicates regional label or “chiefly” followed by other English-speaking country





Using dictionaries



Unabridged

Webster’s Third New International Dictionary of the English Language, Unabridged

Abridged

Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary of English Usage

Etymological

Oxford English Dictionary (OED)


Desk

American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (4th ed., 2000)

High School-and Elementary School-Level

American Heritage Concise Dictionary (3rd Ed.)

Learn more and share online:

References

Bopp, Richard E. & Smith, Linda C. (2001). Reference and information services: An introduction (3rd ed.). Englewood: Libraries Unlimited.

Landau, Sidney I. (2001). Dictionaries: The art and craft of lexicography. Cambridge, United Kingdom: Cambridge University Press.

Merriam-Webster’s New Collegiate Dictionary (9th ed.). (1988). Springfield, MA: Merriam-Webster Inc.

Random House’s unabridged dictionary (1998). New York: Random House.

EZine Articles (2009). Evaluating Dictionaries. Retrieved March 15th, 2009from http://ezinearticles.com

Using a Dictionary (n.d.). Retrieved March 13th, 2009 fromhttp://library.thinkquest.org/5585/dictionary.htm

Video References

Concise Random House Webster’s American sign language dictionary. (2002). New York: Bantam Dell Publishing Group. Dictionary of pseudonyms: 11,000 assumed names and their origins, (4th ed.). (2004). Jefferson City, NC: McFarland & Company. Harrap's Spanish and English business dictionary. (2005). USA: McGraw-Hill Publishing. Merriam-Webster’s dictionary and thesaurus. (2007). Springfield, MA: Merriam-Webster Mass Market.

Video References

Oxford dictionary of biology. (1996). New York: Oxford University Press. Oxford rhyming dictionary. (2004). New York: Oxford University Press. Urban Dictionary: Fularious street slang defined. (2005). Riverside, NJ: Andrews McMeel Publishing.

Video acknowledgement

Team 3 thanks the San Francisco Public Library for use of their facility during the production of our

introductory video.

dictionaries: what's in a word?

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