[Lexicog] Spelling variants vs. synonyms

[Andrew Dunbar]

On 6/21/06, David Tuggy <david_tuggy at sil.org> wrote:
> Spelling variants? Do you mean they aren't pronounced differently?

They may or may not be pronounce differently, as in
English. Also as in English, a word with only one spelling
may have more than one pronunciation. That is part of
the slippery slope that I'm wondering how you guys deal
with.

Andrew Dunbar (hippietrail)


> --David T
>
> Andrew Dunbar wrote:
> > Most dictionaries treat spelling variants differently to synonyms.
> > Spelling variants
> > are often included in the headword, the OED has a special Spellings section.
> > Synonyms may have a cross-reference to a more common word rather than a full
> > definition.
> >
> > Sometimes it turns out to be difficult to know where to draw the line. I am a
> > contributor to the English Wiktionary and I'm currently travelling through
> > Central America, collecting unusual Spanish words as I go. I'm particularly
> > interested in foods and regionalisms.
> >
> > One word I've come across is a fruit called "pejibaye" which I saw in Costa
> > Rica. I also saw it often in Panama but without a sign. When I bought a
> > dictionary of Panamanianisms I found not this word but another entry, "pifa",
> > says it is also known as "pisbao", "pixbae", "pejibayo", and "corolo". The RAE
> > contains only "pejibaye" and "pijibay".
> > http://www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/morton/pejibaye.html lists a lot more.
> >
> > It seems clear that these should be considered spelling variants:
> > pejibaye, pijibay, pejibayo
> >
> > And equally clear that these should be considered synonyms:
> > pifa, corolo
> >
> > But these could go either way:
> > pisbao, pixbae
> >
> > My question is this: what do you guys, the real lexicographers, do when you
> > come across a situation like this?
> >
> > Andrew Dunbar (hippietrail)
> >
> >
> >
>
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>
> Yahoo! Groups Links
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