Discussion Board: Lexicographical Concepts

Symbol

(word)

Referent

(thing)

Thought/ Reference

Expression

(form of word)

Designatum

(our perception of the class of thing)

Denotatum/ referent

(thing)

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All words within a definition must be explained.

The lexical definition should not contain words “more difficult to understand” than the word defined.

The defined word may not be used in its definition, nor may derivations or combinations of the defined word unless they are separately defined. (but one part-of-speech may be used to define another if all senses have been defined)

The definition must correspond to the part-of-speech of the word defined.

Zgusta’s principles of defining

-Avoid circularity

Forms of circularity in dictionary definitions:

When one defines A in terms of B and B in terms of A

When one defines A in terms of A

Circularity is often a problem in ESL dictionaries.

-Define every word used in a definition

WNI stand for “Word Not In”

The rule of Word Not In is broken more often than the circularity rule

-Define the entry word

Definition must define not just talk about the word or its usage

Basic Principles of Making a Dictionary

Author’s principles

Should not be violated

Listed in order of importance

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Priority of essence

Most essential meaning comes first

Substitutability

Not all dictionaries use definitions that are substitutable for the word in context.

Reflection of grammatical function

Definition must be written in accord to the grammatical function/ part-of-speech of the word defined.

Good Defining Practice

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Simplicity

Avoid including difficult words in definitions.

Not always possible to achieve e.g. feather

Using ostensive definition (illustration) is never accurate enough e.g dog

Brevity

Lexicographers usually start with long definitions that are cut down and improved throughout the process of making the dictionary.

Avoidance of ambiguity

Words in definitions must be used unambiguously in the context of the definition.

It’s a problem in dictionaries that depend on synonyms to define words.

Good Defining Practice Continued.

An ostensive definition conveys the meaning of a term by pointing out examples

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Nouns

Nouns are the easiest words to define. Related to its essential property.

Adjectives

Introductory phrases

of

Verbs

Verbs are the most difficult words to define

ESL dictionaries are most likely to experiment with new techniques of defining

Other parts-of-speech

Adverbs > defined by other adverbs or propositional phrases

How To Define By Part-Of-Speech

Noun mirror: smooth surfaces of glass that forms images by reflection. appearance-purpose

Adverb “well” in a good way

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One of the biggest problems in all general dictionaries is finding a way to represent all the senses of a very common verb without burying the reader under a mass of undifferentiated numbered senses such as:

phrasal verbs

Set phrases

Idioms

ESL dictionaries have been more innovative in finding solutions for this problem that native-speaker dictionaries.

Organizing core meanings and breaking them down into subsenses

Innovative Defining Styles

Fill up

The only context in which a word appears” Make amends

Raining cats and dogs (raining heavily / unusually hard)

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In general dictionaries, specificity is less important than breadth of coverage.

But usefulness demands the definition be as specific as possible.

Defining technical terms

Four most common mistakes in scientific and technical dictionaries

Strategies In Defining

Definition of door as wooden leaves out too many doors.

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A citation file: is a selection of potential lexical units in the context of actual usage, drawn from a variety of written sources and often some spoken sources, chiefly because the context illuminates an aspect of meaning.

A corpus (plural corpora) Latin for “body”, is a collection of different texts or of recorded speech, nowadays stored electronically on a computer and indexed so that any particular word can be found quickly in the context in which it has been used.

The Citation File

The electronic corpus and how it differs from the citation file

Collecting citations

Criteria for selecting citations

Dos and don’ts of citation reading

The Citation File (Continued)

Defining From The Evidence

Deciding What To Put In The Dictionary

How Useful Are Citation Files?

Illustrative Quotations

Ostensive definitions include pictorial illustrations.

The Definition Of Names

Other Sources Of Definition