Lexicography is the process or profession of writing or compiling dictionaries.

Lexicography refers to all theory, practice, and profession of compiling dictionaries

Macro-entry: contains all the elements that characterize a word (pragmatics,syntax,collocations, idioms
etc)

Controlled vocab : the vocabulary lexicographers are required to use when writing a definition for a
learners' dictionary

power cut, power station, power, power base, powerful, power sharing

power, power base, power cut, powerful, power sharing, power station (letter by letter)

power, power base, power cut, power sharing, power station, powerful (word by word)

Macrostructure of a dictionary

A. Front matter

1)Intro/Preface

2) Guide with abbreviations (most important part)

3) Brief history of the respected language

B. Main Body

C. Appendices

1)Cities/States

2) Weights and measures

3) Proper names

Microstructure (the structure of an entry)

-> macro entry= all possible information about a word, independently of a specific dictionary (stored in a
database)

-> the actual entry of a dictionary

Both the macro and the actual may contain the same categories of info
Typical elements of an entry

 Headword
->appears in the canonical form (lemma), which presupposes some standardization (e.g. the
infinitive of a verb, the basic one)
->also standardization with respect to spelling
But: What about forms that differ drastically? (e.g. go-went)
 Homograph numbers (optional)
->tell users that there are other identically written words. Used in cases of homonymy or in
relation to part of speech (wet-noun vs wet-verb)
 Phonetic transcription
-> a guide for pronounciation (respelling system and IPA)
-> IPA=consistent / Respelling is easier but not consistent and accurate
 Variant forms (δεύτεροι τύποι)
-> alternative spelling paradigm
 Part-of-speech indication
-> marks the headword as n(oun), adj(ective) etc.
-> Linguistic analysis provides crucial input (e.g. determiners, sentential connectives)
 Grammatical-syntactic information
-> more important in learner's dictionaries
-> many different ways of incorporating it in the entry (e.g. hit_NP, say_'that', insist_PPon or
hit_someone/something or implicitly, through examples)
 Markers for senses and subsenses (numbers or letters) - Polysemy
 Usage label
-> indicate style, register, dialect variety, social attitude (e.g. taboo; offensive) etc. of the
headword
 Usage note
-> a box of instructions that tells the reader how to use the word properly (in cases of words
commonly confused)
 Definition for each sense
 Synonyms
-> may be used to define the word
-> or, in addition to the definition ( preferable, when not separate, risk of circularity increases)
-> used to distinguish senses
BUT: no perfect synonyms!
 Idioms or collocations containing the headword
 Run-on entries
-> regularly formed adjectives and adverbs without being given a definition
 Cross-reference
-> helps users find a related entry or other info about an entry (e.g. βλ.[επε])
 Etymology
-> "popular" element in an entry, yet its inclusion is highly controversial

21/3/18 (Lecture 3)
A definition can have two possible functions:
1. encode (for purposes of production-more demanding)
We should know:
  the context
 the selectional preferences/collocations
 The pragmatic/ core/ referential or expressive meaning

Successful encoding requires an understanding of:

 semantic distinctions, often very subtle -> e.g. amusing - enjoyable

 expressive, connotative properties
 collocational possibilities (e.g. analytic vs analytical)
2. decode (for purposes of understanding)

Types of definitions (SOS)

-> ANALYTICAL DEFINITION: stating a superordinate concept (hypernym), together with one or more
distinctive features of the defined word

-> SYNONYM-BASED DEFINITION: Collection of synonyms, usually with abstract words; but danger of
circularity

-> PROTOTYPE-BASED DEFINITION: Stating a typical/prototypical property next to an analytical or

synonym-based definition

~ words like "typically", "especially", "mainly" etc. in a definition-> acknowledgment of prototype effects

e.g. day of rest: a day set aside from normal activity, typically Sunday on religious grounds

->METALINGUISTIC DEFINITION: reference to the use of a word (common with functional morphemes
-e.g. "and", "because", "the" etc.)

Principles of good defining

-> Principles that should be observed to be the maximum-their violation should be avoided

Some are essential, others just desirable

a) Simplicity (essential in most cases, desirable in cases like "mind") : A word should be defined in terms
simpler than itself -> controlled vocabulary

but: what is a simple concept and is this always possible? (e.g. because, and, mind [extremely
polysemous], motion...)

So, simplicityis desirable but not essential

b) Every word used in the definitions, should be also defined (essential principle)

Still violated especially with respect to particular senses of the words used in the definition
c) Avoid circularity (essential principles)

Two types of circularity:

1) The word defined should not be used in its own definition -unless the latter is defined

2) Words should not be defined in terms of each other. In practice, often violated

But, some concepts (colors, family relations etc.) are so basic that they cannot be broken down
to other parts, simpler or otherwise -> circularity

3) Brevity (desirable): Definitions should be brief

4) Substitutability: A definition should be substitutable for the defined word

->the head of the definition should belong to the same part of speech as the defined word

but this is impossible for some cases like "yes", "the"...so metalinguistic definitions are not substitutable

in cases such as λουλούδια we may have loss of collocation nad divergence in connotations

5) Different types of definition are appropriate for different types of words

-> need to define by part of speech

18/4/2018

Defining by part of speech:

NOUNS: By far the most numerous. Especially in scientific and technical dictionaries. The definition must
answer the question "what is it?"

-> to define them, we use hypernyms or synonyms. Or generally, to include both, using the appropriate
semantic feautures.

e.g. pleasure (a feeling, an emotion) intelligence (ability ),

-> also we define them in terms of their prototype-based definitions: ranking of attributes and/or
members of a lexical category

Exercise-Handout

"mother"

1) Both the biological and the nurturer mother

2) [traditional] mother: nurturing model, and married to someone

3) she is also the mother...:biological and nurturing model

4) biological model

5) biological

6) biological

7) biological model-mother of an animal

8) the mother of the Queen (way of calling)

9) Mother- religious context η Παναγία

10) biological

11) biological+nurture model

12) biological+nurture model

13) metaphor

14) nurture model

15) nurture model

16) nurture model

17) nurture model

definitions of "mother"

the problem is that both do not combine both prototypical models (biological and nurturing model) but
present them as mutually exclusive or different

Theory

Compounds: should they be included as separate entries and where? (e.g. dining room)

The criterion is whether or not the meaning can be fully predicted. The degree of predictability
determines whether the compound will be included or not

Connotations, expressiv/pragmatic meaning (relevant not only for nouns)

e.g. fundamentalist- usually in a negative context (not included in the definition)

see from e-class the rest

25/4/2018

Older forms of definitions

-try to follow the principle of substitutability

- use formal conventions

- are based on necessary and sufficient conditions -"criterial properties" e.g. man: an adult, male human

Drawbacks:

Formal conventions hard for the user to remember

Substitutability often results in awkward phrasings

In modern lexicography, the words are defined through their actual usage (in context) -via the corpus-
concordances

-> the wording of the definition should be in principle capable of reflecting a) the prototypical or typical
semantic features and b) the typical or preferred context (selectional preferences, collocational groups
etc.) for any given word

When- definitions

Sustitutability is ruled out- no longer important

Picks one or more of the typical uses of the word

COBUILD style definitions

-Defining in full sentences (analytical definitions, but in full prose)

-An if or when clause, which necessarily includes the headword in one or more typical contexts of use
(syntactic fames, selectional and collocational preferences)

- A main clause which contains the definition (should not contain the headword)

Check Lecture missed

9/5/2018

Usage Labels

Socio-linguistic theory causes problems with usage labels. No consistency.

Currency: How current a word is (for older/obsolete forms)

gay--> meaning "happy" : dated

literary rare words: archaic

obsolete: words that do not exist anymore in the language

The current label is assigned to the form not the definition/referent.

Regional/dialectic usage labels

"regional", "dialect", "British English" etc.

Specialized terminology/ domain usage labels

Less used in dictionaries because the definition of the word shows the particular domain

Attitude usage labels

Most useful and most controversial category of labels

Style/register: formal,familiar,spoken etc. (most confusing category)

Slang usage labels (αργκο)

Slang is deliberately non-standard

It is not taboo words

23/5/2018

Discriminating senses

The assumptions in earlier lexicography are not valid any longer. They are many exceptions to the rules
established.

Ordering senses

-> Historical criterion

-> Frequency

-> Core/prototypical