[Lexicog] Re: Difficult words

[Kenneth C. Hill]

When I said I always consult "the dictionary" when I am seriously unsure of a correct spelling, I really meant "a dictionary" because I have a number of dictionaries at hand and it is not always the same one that I consult. Sometimes I even look up an English spelling in a bilingual dictionary, if the bilingual dictionary happens to be nearer at hand.The dictionaries I consult happen to be print dictionaries, but in principle looking up an item to check its spelling doesn't depend on the medium.

--Ken

rtroike at email.arizona.edu wrote:                               
 I have a pretty good visual memory for the spelling of words, but when
 I'm unsure, I usually -- not always like Ken -- consult a dictionary. But
 Jonathan is thinking only of print versions when he says "the dictionary"
 (NB: there isn't any such critter) "has (almost) lost one of its uses."
 I installed the CD-ROM version of the Concise Oxford Dictionary on my
 computer, and use it several times a week. It's much handier than getting
 up from my computer and going in another room to consult a print dictionary
 (though I still do, but usually for other purposes). Probably most
 people -- certainly my students -- are not as punctilious about spelling
 as I am, and rely increasingly on spell-check programs, but many are
 probably consulting online dictionaries rather than print versions. It is
 indeed possible that more people are consulting dictionaries now than in
 the past, but simply in a different form, since these versions are more
 comfortable and convenient to use.
 
 Rudy
 
 >
 > POSTED BY: "KENNETH C. HILL"  KENNETHCHILL at YAHOO.COM         Wed Jun 
 > 14, 2006 6:50 pm (PST)
 >
 > When in doubt about a spelling I *always* consult the dictionary.
 >
 > --Ken Hill
 >
 > jkrimer  wrote:                               Greetings,
 >
 >  I believe the dictionary has (almost) lost one of its uses.
 >  Although spelling is still of some importance when communicating with
 >  the written word, the dictionary is not our first choice when
 >  confirming spelling. The average person uses a computer much more
 >  often and is more willing to turn on a computer than pick up a
 >  dictionary.
 >
 >  What do you think?
 >
 >  Jonathan
 
 
     
             _



 		
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