[Lexicog] Inclusion policies for phrases in well-known dictionaries

[Benjamin Barrett]

My lexicography work has been only on bilingual dictionaries (plus a very
little bit on the wiki pages). I hope the below suggestions are helpful.
 
One thing that might be useful to keep in mind is that a definition should
say what the word is, and what it is not. For example, after describing a
door as something that opens, it should be modified so you know it's not a
window.
 
Egyptian pyramid seems reasonable if features unique to the Egyptian type
are being described as opposed to the American pyramids. Surely they have
different structures, uses, histories, etc.
 
Although fictional character seems transparent, the expression gets 980,000
Googits, which is a powerful reason for inclusion. The word "fictional"
perhaps just clarifies the word to distinguish it from other sorts of
characters.
 
File sharing seems like a single word to me. It seems like the expression
envelopes a single concept and is an activity that people take part in.
 
Item of furniture seems ridiculous; I can't think of a reason to keep it.
 
I don't know what a "leaf storm" is. If it means leaves flying violently in
the wind, it might be a single phenomenon worth keeping.
 
Radioactive material seems like a single item, though the English does seem
transparent. It might be best described as a collocation, but is there any
other word that describes what "radioactive material" is? Radioactive
substance is a possibility, but there don't seem to be many.
 
Unauthorized copy seems borderline. Is this a copy that is merely
unauthorized, or does it have a particular meaning? It seems to me that
screaming at someone distributing copies of your private poetry, "That's an
unauthorized copy," is simply the adjective unauthorized plus copy, and
what's more, this would be true for any paper copy. As a single expression,
and thus worth defining, it seems like it refers specifically to copies of
software for which a license has not been granted by the copyright owner.
(There might be a counterargument here.)
 
HTH
* * * * *
Benjamin Barrett
Baking the World a Better Place
www.hiroki.us
* * * * * 


  _____  

From: lexicographylist at yahoogroups.com
[mailto:lexicographylist at yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of Andrew Dunbar
Sent: Monday, October 10, 2005 3:28 PM

2. Wiktionary is currently including more and more phrases whose
meanings are transparent and which are not in any print dictionary. It
is becoming an issue. Some phrases which have been given definitions
at some point are: "Egyptian pyramid", "fictional character", "file
sharing", "item of furniture", "leaf storm", "radioactive material",
and "unauthorized copy". After debate, only a couple have been
removed. Since none of our contributors have any training in
lexicography, I am keenly interested in knowing how qualified people
draw the line between phrases to include in a dictionary and phrases
not to include.

Andrew Dunbar (hippietrail)

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