The Different Ways of Describing Meaning in Monolingual Dictionaries

The Different Ways of Describing Meaning in Monolingual Dictionaries PDF Author: Christian Haas
Publisher: GRIN Verlag
ISBN: 3656900752
Category : Literary Collections
Languages : en
Pages : 20

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Book Description
Seminar paper from the year 2014 in the subject English Language and Literature Studies - Linguistics, grade: 1,0, Friedrich-Alexander University Erlangen-Nuremberg (Institut für Anglistik / Sprachwissenschaft), language: English, abstract: In his textbook “Lexical Semantics”, D. A. Cruse defines dictionaries as follows: “An ordinary dictionary characterises a lexical item in three distinct, though intimately inter-connected, ways: first, its form (graphic and phonological); second, its grammatical function; and third, its meaning.” (1986: 1) The biggest challenge for dictionaries usually lies in the latter: the description of mean-ing. Readers of dictionaries may have different backgrounds of knowledge and a dis-tinct vocabulary, so their understanding of definitions may vary greatly. Bilingual dic-tionaries have an easier time facing this challenge. They simply state the translation for a lexical unit. Monolingual dictionaries, however, need to find ways to adequately and comprehensively describe meaning, with different target groups in mind. The following paper will discuss which methods dictionaries use to describe meaning. A special emphasis will be put on monolingual dictionaries and their approach to bringing meaning across to learners of English, who naturally draw on a limited vocabulary and thus may require innovative methods for the description of meaning.

The Different Ways of Describing Meaning in Monolingual Dictionaries

The Different Ways of Describing Meaning in Monolingual Dictionaries PDF Author: Christian Haas
Publisher: GRIN Verlag
ISBN: 3656900752
Category : Literary Collections
Languages : en
Pages : 20

Get Book Here

Book Description
Seminar paper from the year 2014 in the subject English Language and Literature Studies - Linguistics, grade: 1,0, Friedrich-Alexander University Erlangen-Nuremberg (Institut für Anglistik / Sprachwissenschaft), language: English, abstract: In his textbook “Lexical Semantics”, D. A. Cruse defines dictionaries as follows: “An ordinary dictionary characterises a lexical item in three distinct, though intimately inter-connected, ways: first, its form (graphic and phonological); second, its grammatical function; and third, its meaning.” (1986: 1) The biggest challenge for dictionaries usually lies in the latter: the description of mean-ing. Readers of dictionaries may have different backgrounds of knowledge and a dis-tinct vocabulary, so their understanding of definitions may vary greatly. Bilingual dic-tionaries have an easier time facing this challenge. They simply state the translation for a lexical unit. Monolingual dictionaries, however, need to find ways to adequately and comprehensively describe meaning, with different target groups in mind. The following paper will discuss which methods dictionaries use to describe meaning. A special emphasis will be put on monolingual dictionaries and their approach to bringing meaning across to learners of English, who naturally draw on a limited vocabulary and thus may require innovative methods for the description of meaning.

The Oxford Handbook of Lexicography

The Oxford Handbook of Lexicography PDF Author: Philip Durkin
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0199691630
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 737

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Book Description
This volume provides concise, authoritative accounts of the approaches and methodologies of modern lexicography and of the aims and qualities of its end products. Leading scholars and professional lexicographers, from all over the world and representing all the main traditions andperspectives, assess the state of the art in every aspect of research and practice. The book is divided into four parts, reflecting the main types of lexicography. Part I looks at synchronic dictionaries - those for the general public, monolingual dictionaries for second-language learners, andbilingual dictionaries. Part II and III are devoted to the distinctive methodologies and concerns of the historical dictionaries and specialist dictionaries respectively, while chapters in Part IV examine specific topics such as description and prescription; the representation of pronunciation; andthe practicalities of dictionary production. The book ends with a chronology of the major events in the history of lexicography. It will be a valuable resource for students, scholars, and practitioners in the field.

Better Words

Better Words PDF Author: Gabriele Stein
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Foreign Language Study
Languages : en
Pages : 264

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Book Description
Better Words provides an introduction to EFL lexicography and an insight into its fundamental issues and problems. It describes in detail the major changes that have occurred in the production of EFL dictionaries over recent decades and will help teachers and their students to assess the description of the word stock on offer and to decide which EFL dictionary is the most adequate for their specific purposes. During the last twenty-five years lexicographers and their publishers have experimented with new ways of describing and presenting the words included in their EFL dictionaries to make them more accessible to users. This book compares these dictionaries and critically reviews the lexicographal achievements in the description and presentation of word meanings, registers, exemplification, cultural contexts and pictorial illustrations. It also examines the advantages and disadvantages of using a bilingual and a monolingual EFL dictionary. Better Words is a companion volume to Chosen Words: Past and Present Problems for Dictionary Makers by Noel Osselton (1995) and Living Words: Language, Lexicography and the Knowledge Revolution by Tom McArthur (1998). Both are published by University of Exeter Press in the series Exeter Language and Lexicography. The general editors of this series are Reinhard Hartmann and Tom McArthur.

Defining Language

Defining Language PDF Author: Geoff Barnbrook
Publisher: John Benjamins Publishing
ISBN: 9027296170
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 298

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Book Description
Definition is a basic activity of language, of particular importance to linguists because of its use of language to describe itself. Beyond this inherent significance as a crucial element of language study, definitions also provide a rich potential source of the information needed for Natural Language Processing systems. This book describes an investigation of the subset of general language used in definition sentences and the development of a taxonomy of definition types, a grammar of definition sentences and parsing software which can extract their functional components. The work is based on definition sentences used in one of the dictionaries from the Cobuild range, and the book includes a brief history of the development of monolingual English dictionaries, an assessment of the concepts of sublanguages and local grammars and a full exploration of the results of the analysis and of the present and future applications of the taxonomy, grammar and parser.

Lexicographic Description of English

Lexicographic Description of English PDF Author: Morton Benson
Publisher: John Benjamins Publishing
ISBN: 9027230145
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 303

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Book Description
Designed to help lexicographers compile better dictionaries of English, this book provides information about the language that is not available in any other single source. It is the first serious attempt to describe in detail the lexical and grammatical differences between American and British English and offers a trailblazing solution to the vexing problem of how to treat General American and British RP pronunciation in the same dictionary with the help of a Simplified Transcription for which any typewriter keyboard can be adapted and a pioneering description of the principles concerning the treatment of fixed grammatical and lexical collocations in future general-purpose dictionaries of English.

Dictionary Look-up Strategies and the Bilingualised Learner's Dictionary

Dictionary Look-up Strategies and the Bilingualised Learner's Dictionary PDF Author: Jenny Thumb
Publisher: ISSN
ISBN:
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 144

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Book Description
Annotation This study on dictionary look-up strategies shows how think-aloud can be used as an effective research method in studying look-up strategies in depth. The study also shows how a coding scheme of look-up operation codes can allow dictionary use researchers to analyze and describe dictionary look-up behaviour. The bilingualised learner's dictionary is shown to be highly usable and useful because of its compatibility with the language needs of learners. The claim that strategy use is complex is also supported by the results of this study."

Translation and Bilingual Dictionaries

Translation and Bilingual Dictionaries PDF Author: Chan Sin-wai
Publisher: Walter de Gruyter
ISBN: 3110912864
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 196

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Book Description
Is the bilingual dictionary really the translator’s best friend? Or is it the case that all translators hate all dictionaries? The truth probably lies half-way. It is difficult to verify anyway, as the literature on the subject(s) is limited, not helped by the fact that Lexicography and Translation have stood apart for decades despite their commonality of purpose. Here is a volume, based on the proceedings of a successful conference at Hong Kong, that may at last provide some answers.

A Handbook of Lexicography

A Handbook of Lexicography PDF Author: Bo Svensén
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 9780521708241
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
This book provides a systematic survey of the theory and methods of dictionary-making (including the linguistic background): what types of dictionary there are, how different kinds of information are dealt with when compiling dictionaries, how this information is presented to users, and how dictionaries are actually used. It refers throughout to both monolingual and bilingual dictionaries, giving a full account of the writing of definitions as well as of the selection and presentation of equivalents. The treatment of other types of information provided in dictionaries - such as pronunciation, inflection, constructions, collocations and idioms - is described systematically in individual chapters. The book also discusses dictionary structure, illustrations, the collection and selection of material, the management of dictionary projects, law and ethics in lexicographic work, and dictionary criticism. As well as looking at print lexicography, the author discusses the role of the Web, electronic corpora, electronic dictionaries, and compilation software used in dictionary-making. This is an important and practical guide to contemporary lexicography, designed for lexicographers, language students and teachers, translators and academics.

New Trends in Lexicography

New Trends in Lexicography PDF Author: Olga Karpova
Publisher: Cambridge Scholars Publishing
ISBN: 1443820180
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 280

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Book Description
The present book contains a collection of works developing new trends in theoretical and practical lexicography devoted to manifold description of lexis. All papers are divided into two main sections: Part I, Systemic and Cross-cultural Relations of Words in the Dictionary, presents analysis of cultural issues and phraseology with special reference to English dictionaries for general- and specific-purposes. The main focus is given to the principles of lexicographic presentation of non-equivalent lexis, idioms, clichés, nominations of non-verbal behaviour and proper names of people in bilingual and monolingual dictionaries. Part II, entitled Specialized Dictionaries: Traditions and Innovations, deals with peculiarities of Author Lexicography, Learners lexicography, LSP dictionaries, dictionaries of English verbs, and varieties of the English language in its synchronic and diachronic aspects. This book is based on plenary presentations of the VIIIth school on Lexicography “Synchronic and Diachronic Lexicography: A New Age of Theory and Practice” (Ivanovo State University, September 10–12, 2009) and continues the series of monographs devoted to theoretical and practical problems of modern and historical lexicography: Essays on Lexicon, Lexicography, Terminography in Russian, American and Other Cultures (2007) and Lexicography and Terminology: A Worldwide Outlook (2009) published by Cambridge Scholars Publishing.

Lexicography

Lexicography PDF Author: Howard Jackson
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1134574452
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 210

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Book Description
This book is an accessible introduction to lexicography – the study of dictionaries. Dictionaries are used at home and at school, cited in law courts, sermons and parliament, and referred to by crossword addicts and Scrabble players alike. Lexicography provides a detailed overview of the history, types and content of these essential references. Howard Jackson analyzes a wide range of dictionaries, from those for native speakers to thematic dictionaries and those on CD-ROM, to reveal the ways in which dictionaries fulfil their dual function of describing the vocabulary of English and providing a useful and accessible reference resource. Beginning with an introduction to the terms used in lexicology to describe words and vocabulary, and offering summaries and suggestions for further reading, Lexicography: An Introduction is highly student-friendly. It is ideal for anyone with an interest in the development and use of dictionaries.