A.Definition of dictionary
A dictionary is a collection of words in one or more specific languages, often listed alphabetically (or by radical and stroke for ideograph languages), with usage of information, definitions, etymologies, phonetics, pronunciations, translation, and other information
B. Kind of dictionary
1. Bilingual dictionary
A bilingual dictionary or translation dictionary is a specialized dictionary used to translate words or phrases from one language to another. Bilingual dictionaries can be unidirectional, meaning that they list the meanings of words of one language in another, or can be bidirectional, allowing translation to and from both languages. Bidirectional bilingual dictionaries usually consist of two sections, each listing words and phrases of one language alphabetically along with their translationIn addition to the translation, a bilingual dictionary usually indicates the part of speech, gender, verb type, declension model and other grammatical clues to help a non-native speaker use the word.
2. Electronic dictionary
An electronic dictionary is a dictionary whose data exists in digital form and can be accessed through a number of different media.[1] Electronic dictionaries can be found in several forms, including:
a. as dedicated handheld devices
b. as apps on smartphones and tablet computers or computer software
c. as a function built into an E-reader
d. as CD-ROMs and DVD-ROMs, typically packaged with a printed dictionary, to be installed on the user’s own computer
e. as free or paid-for online products.
3. Monolingual learner's dictionary
A Monolingual learner's dictionary (or MLD) is a type of dictionary designed to meet the reference needs of people learning a foreign language. MLDs are based on the premise that language-learners should progress from a bilingual dictionary to a monolingual one as they become more proficient in their target language, but that general-purpose dictionaries (aimed at native speakers) are inappropriate for their needs. Dictionaries for learners include information on grammar, usage, common errors, collocation, and pragmatics, which is largely missing from standard dictionaries, because native speakers tend to know these aspects of language intuitively.
4. Encyclopedic dictionary
a. Definition Encyclopedic
An encyclopedic dictionary typically includes a large number of short listings, arranged alphabetically, and discussing a wide range of topics. Encyclopedic dictionaries can be general, containing articles on topics in many different fields; or they can specialize in a particular field, such as Art, Biography, Law, Medicine, or Philosophy. They may also be organized around a particular academic, cultural, ethnic, or national perspective.
b. Historically Definition
Historically, the term has been used to refer to any encyclopedic reference book (that is, one comprehensive in scope), which was organized alphabetically, as with the familiar dictionary. (The term dictionary preceded encyclopedia in common usage by about two centuries.) To convey their alphabetic method of organization and to contrast that method with other systems for classifying knowledge, many early encyclopedias were titled or sub-titled "a dictionary of arts and sciences" or something similar
A phonetic dictionary is a dictionary that allows you to locate words by the "way they sound", i.e. a dictionary that matches common or phonetic misspellings with the correct spelling of a word. Such a dictionary uses pronunciation respelling to aid the search for or recognition of a word.
Arhyming dictionary' is a specialist dictionary designed for use in writing poetry and lyrics. In a rhyming dictionary, words are categorized into equivalence classes that consist of words which rhyme with one another. They will also typically support several different kinds of rhymes, and possibly also alliteration as well.
Because rhyming dictionaries are based on pronunciation, they are difficult to compile. Words and rhyming patterns change their pronunciation over time and between dialects. Rhyming dictionaries for Old English, Elizabethan poetry, or Standard English would have quite different content. Rhyming dictionaries are invaluable for historical linguistics – as they record pronunciation, they can be used to reconstruct pronunciation differences and similarities that are not necessarily reflected in spelling.
A simple reverse dictionary, which collates words starting from the end, provides a rough rhyming dictionary, to the extent that spelling follows pronunciation, but a precise rhyming dictionary reflects pronunciation, not spelling.
A reverse dictionary is a dictionary organized in a non-standard order (usually referring to being in a so-called "reverse" order) that provides the user with information that would be difficult to obtain from a traditionally alphabetized dictionary. There are two principal types of reverse dictionaries: reverse word dictionaries, and reverse concept dictionaries (conceptual dictionary). This article discusses reverse word dictionaries; see conceptual dictionary for reverse concept dictionaries.
Reverse dictionaries were historically difficult to produce before the advent of the electronic computer, but have become more common since 1974, when the first computer sorted reverse dictionary was published: Stahl and Scavnicky's A Reverse Dictionary of the Spanish Language.
The reverse word dictionary is a dictionary where the word entries in the dictionary are not alphabetized in the same manner as traditional dictionary. For example, A Reverse Dictionary of the Spanish Language[1] and Walker's Rhyming Dictionary[2] are reverse dictionaries, the organization of which is based upon sorting each entry word upon its last letter and the subsequent letters proceeding toward the beginning of that word. Consequently, in these reverse dictionaries all words that have the same suffix appear in order in the dictionary. Such a reverse dictionary would be useful for linguists and poets who might be looking for words ending with a particular suffix, or by an anthropologist or forensics specialist examining a damaged text (e.g. a stone inscription, or a burned document) that had only the final portion of a particular word preserved. Reverse dictionaries of this type have been published for most major alphabetical languages (see numerous examples listed below). By way of contrast, in a standard dictionary words are organized such that words with the same prefix appear in order, since the sorting order is starting with the first letter of the entry word and subsequent letters proceeding toward the end of that word.
Applications of reverse word dictionaries include:
Simple rhyme dictionaries, to the extent that spelling predicts pronunciation.
Finding words with a given suffix (i.e., meaningful ending), like -ment.
Finding words with the same ending as a given word, even if the sequence is not meaningful.
Setting or solving word puzzles, such as -gry or the earlier -dous puzzle (find words ending in some way), or crossword puzzles.
A visual dictionary is a dictionary that primarily uses pictures to illustrate the meaning of words. Visual dictionaries are often organized by themes, instead of being an alphabetical list of words. For each theme, an image is labeled with the correct word to identify each component of the item in question. Visual dictionaries can be monolingual or multilingual, providing the names of items in several languages. An index of all defined words is usually included to assist finding the correct illustration that defines.
a thesaurus is a reference work that lists words grouped together according to similarity of meaning (containing synonyms and sometimes antonyms), in contrast to a dictionary, which provides definitions for words, and generally lists them in alphabetical order. The main purpose of such reference works is to help the user "to find the word, or words, by which [an] idea may be most fitly and aptly expressed" – to quote Peter Mark Roget, architect of the best known thesaurus in the English language.[1]
Although including synonyms, a thesaurus should not be taken as a complete list of all the synonyms for a particular word. The entries are also designed for drawing distinctions between similar words and assisting in choosing exactly the right word. Unlike a dictionary, a thesaurus entry does not give the definition of words.
In library science and information science thesauri have been widely used to specify domain models. Recently, thesauri have been implements with SKOS.
Simple Knowledge Organization System
Simple Knowledge Organization System (SKOS) is a W3C recommendation designed for representation of thesauri, classification schemes, taxonomies, subject-heading systems, or any other type of structured controlled vocabulary. SKOS is part of the Semantic Web family of standards built upon RDF and RDFS, and its main objective is to enable easy publication and use of such vocabularies as linked data.
Etymology
The word "thesaurus" is derived from 16th-century New Latin, in turn from Latin thēsaurus, which is the Latinisation of the Greek θησαυρός (thēsauros), "treasure, treasury, storehouse".[2] The word thēsauros is of uncertain etymology. Douglas Harper derives it from the root of the Greek verb τιθέναι tithenai, "to put, to place."[2] Robert Beekes rejected an Indo-European derivation and suggested a Pre-Greek suffix *-arwo-.[3]
From the 16th to the 19th centuries, the term "thesaurus" might be applied to any dictionary or encylopedia; as in the Thesaurus linguae latinae(1532), and the Thesaurus linguae graecae(1572). The meaning "collection of words arranged according to sense" is first attested in 1852 in Roget's title and thesaurer is attested in Middle English for "treasurer
How to use dictionary
dictionary will give you the following information about a word:
1. How to spell the word and its special plural form
2. Whether or not the word is capitalized or abbreviated
3. How to break the word into syllables
4. How to pronounce the word
5. The part of speech of a word
6. Different meanings that the word has, as well as synonyms (same meaning) and antonyms (opposite meaning)
7. A sentence or expression with the word used correctly
8. The meanings of important prefixes and suffixes
9. The special uses of the word
10. The history of the word
11. Other words derived from the main word
Special sections in some dictionaries tell you about:
1. Foreign words and phrases
2. Abbreviations
3. Addresses of colleges or government offices
4. The population of cities and countries
Applying the following pointers will save time when you use a dictionary:
1. Know and use proper alphabetical order
2. Use guide words to save time
3. Check all abbreviations and symbols in the special sections
4. If at first you don’t succeed in finding the word, don’t give up. You might need to check several possible spellings before finding the word
5. Substitute the meaning you find for the word in the sentence. Be sure you select the most appropriate meaning, not merely the first one you come to
6. Try saying the word aloud after you look at the pronunciation key.