Dictionary- a collection of words (sometimes also morphemes or phrases) arranged in a certain order, used as a reference book that explains the meaning of the units described, gives various information about them or their translation into another language, or provides information about the objects denoted by them.
Dictionary classifications:
1. By object of description:
A) encyclopedic– information about objects, phenomena, events that are indicated by words; do not contain prepositions, pronouns, conjunctions, particles, few verbs; created by specialists in different fields of knowledge. Object: subject and concept
b) linguistic– describe the word and give its meanings, point out the grammatical, spelling, orthoepic features of words, and stylistic affiliation; created by philologists, linguists, lexicographers. Object: word
2. By the volume of the dictionary. Measured in thousands of words.
3. According to the language of description of the input units of the dictionary:
a) monolingual (explanatory, slang, language of a specific writer, synonyms, antonyms, neologisms) - a unit and its description in one language.
b) translated (bilingual, multilingual)
4. By describing individual functional varieties of language. In certain areas of communication and with a certain function. For example, the scientific field - a dictionary of terms; territorial dialect; literary language, etc.
5. By unit of description of the dictionary:
a) words – synonyms, antonyms, homonyms
b) phraseological units
6. According to the description of the side of the lexical unit:
a) orthoepic - pronunciation of words
b) spelling - spelling and almost all grammar are given
7. In order of words:
a) in alphabetical order (either words - linguistic dictionaries, or concepts or names of concepts - ideographic dictionary - thesaurus, generic units)
Dictionary options:
1. Dictionary structure: introduction, preface; how to use; transcription; abbreviations and explanations; main list of words; additional material (appendices)
2. Structure of a dictionary entry: depends on the specific dictionary. The title word that opens the article; main part (description of the features of the word); quotes and illustrations.
Types of dictionaries according to Shcherba:
1) Academic type dictionary - reference dictionary. Academic type dictionary is normative, describing the lexical system of a given language: it should not contain facts that contradict modern usage. Dictionaries and reference books may contain information about a wider range of words that go beyond the boundaries of the standard literary language.
2) Encyclopedic Dictionary - general dictionary.
3) Thesaurus is a regular (explanatory or translation) dictionary. A thesaurus is a dictionary that contains all the words that appear in a given language at least once. The usual ideological (ideographic) dictionary, words-concepts are classified in such a way as to show their living relationship.
27. Typology of dictionaries
Typology of oppositions
The first in Russian science to address the problem of typology of dictionaries L. V. Shcherba. He proposed a classification of dictionaries based on 6 opposites:
Academic type dictionary - reference dictionary. An academic dictionary is normative, describing the lexical system of a given language: it should not contain facts that contradict modern usage. In contrast to academic dictionaries, reference dictionaries can contain information about a wider range of words that go beyond the boundaries of the standard literary language.
Encyclopedic Dictionary - General Dictionary. Contrasting encyclopedic (describe a thing, reality) and linguistic dictionaries (describe words)
Thesaurus - regular (explanatory or translation) dictionary. A thesaurus is a dictionary that lists all the words that appear in a given language at least once.
The usual (explanatory or translation) dictionary is ideological (ideographic ) dictionary. In an ideological dictionary, words and concepts must be classified in such a way as to show their living interrelation.
Dictionary - translation dictionary
Non-historical dictionary - historical dictionary
Linguistic and encyclopedic dictionaries
The distinction deserves special attention linguistic(especially sensible ones) and encyclopedic dictionaries, which, first of all, lies in the fact that in encyclopedic dictionaries concepts are described (depending on the volume and addressee of the dictionary, more or less detailed scientific information is given), in explanatory ones - linguistic meanings. There are many dictionary entries in encyclopedic dictionaries in which the heading word is proper nouns.
An example of a dictionary entry from a linguistic dictionary:
MARMOT, -r k a, m. A small rodent of the family. squirrels, living in burrows and hibernating in winter.
An example of a dictionary entry from an encyclopedic dictionary:
GROUNDS, genus of mammals of the family. squirrel Body length up to 60 cm, tail less than 1/2 body length. 13 species, in the North. hemispheres (excluding deserts and tundras); in Russia several species. Object of fishing (fur, fat, meat). They can be carriers of the plague pathogen. Some species are rare and protected.
Encyclopedias
The point of view is expressed: “ An encyclopedia is not a dictionary and has nothing to do with lexicography. The only reason to consider it a dictionary is the arrangement of the symbols of the described realities in alphabetical order».
However, today lexicographers are increasingly inclined to a different point of view: “ The main “hero” of a linguistic dictionary is the word, the main “character” of an encyclopedic dictionary is a thing, a reality with its parameters. Linguists describebeing words , their forms and meanings, the authors of encyclopedias systematizebeing of reality with her things that have spatio-temporal and other characteristics. But these two beings are not isolated from each other, and in fact, linguists are always forced to touch upon the problems of things, and “encyclopedists” - the problems of words. The boundary between “words” and “things” that passes in our minds is arbitrary and sometimes elusive»
Typological features
There are dictionaries:
Thesaurus-type dictionaries
Dictionaries in which vocabulary is selected according to certain parameters
by area of use
colloquial
colloquial
dialectal
terminological
poetic vocabulary
archaisms
historicisms
neologisms
historical perspective
foreign words
internationalisms
abbreviations
onomastic
occasionalisms
From point of view selection vocabulary.
origin
characterization of word types
source
From the point of view of disclosing individual aspects(parameters) words
etymological
grammatical
spelling
orthoepic
dictionaries of function words
From the point of view of disclosure systemic relations between words
nesting
derivational
homonymous
paronymic dictionaries (plan of expressions)
synonymous, antonymous dictionaries (content plan).
in terms of choice units of description
morphemes
combinations
phraseological units
quotes
From the point of view of describing an individual diachronic section
historical
different eras of modern language
From point of view functional aspect
by frequency
frequency
rare words
metaphors
epithets
comparisons
expressive vocabulary
difficulties
correctness
by stylistic use
according to standard characteristics
By direction presentation of the material
based on the form
reverse
ideographic
thematic
Modern dictionaries of the Russian language
explanatory dictionaries
terminology dictionaries
neologism dictionaries
dynamic dictionaries
dictionaries of foreign words
dictionary of translation terms
synonym dictionaries
antonym dictionaries
homonym dictionaries
paronym dictionaries
dictionaries of new words
dictionaries "New in Russian vocabulary"
phraseological dictionaries
ideographic dictionaries
associative dictionaries
grammar dictionaries
illustrated dictionaries
combinability dictionaries
dictionaries of "winged words"
dictionaries of epithets
Dictionaries of obscene vocabulary (vulgar, obscene, crudely colloquial)
Argo dictionaries
word-formation dictionaries
spelling dictionaries
spelling dictionaries
rhyming dictionaries
translator's dictionary
dictionary of commonly used words and phrases in scientific and technical literature
combinability dictionaries
Dictionaries of difficulties of the Russian language
dictionaries of rare and obsolete words
abbreviation dictionaries
writers' language dictionaries
etymological dictionaries
historical dictionaries
dialect dictionaries
children's speech dictionaries
anthroponymic dictionaries
toponymic dictionaries
linguistic and cultural dictionaries
linguistic and cultural dictionaries
frequency dictionaries
comprehensive educational dictionaries
dictionaries of linguistic terms
accent dictionaries
monolingual dictionaries
bilingual dictionaries
multilingual dictionaries
consolidated dictionary of Russian vocabulary
youth slang dictionaries
jargon dictionaries
regional dialect dictionaries
subject dictionaries
special dictionaries
dictionaries labeled chipboard (for official use)
End of the 20th century marked by an unprecedented rise in vocabulary. Various fragments of the linguistic picture of the world, levels of the language system, various aspects of scientific knowledge are embodied in dictionary form. Modern domestic lexicography provides the recipient of dictionary information with a wide range of diverse dictionaries. The diversity of dictionary information often makes it impossible to give a lexicographic publication an unambiguous description, which can complicate its search. Even in bibliographic reference books and catalogues, it can be difficult to find the necessary dictionaries. It is even more difficult to determine the volume and nature of information contained in a particular dictionary, and which lexicographic publications it is advisable to turn to when solving emerging linguistic, methodological and other issues. Thus, the task of creating a typology of dictionaries is dictated by the practical needs of generalizing and systematizing existing lexicographic products. At the same time, the problem of typology of dictionaries is one of the most important in the theory of lexicography, since it allows not only to comprehend what has already been accomplished, but also to predict the creation of new types of dictionaries, determine the nature of lexicographic projects, and stimulate the efforts of lexicographers in different directions.
The type of dictionary is determined by the basic information it contains and its general purpose. L. V. Shcherba was the first in Russian science to address the problem of dictionary typology. In his article “An Experience in the General Theory of Lexicography” (Shcherba 1974), he proposed a classification of dictionaries based on six oppositions.
Particularly noteworthy is the distinction between linguistic (primarily explanatory) and encyclopedic dictionaries, which primarily lies in the fact that encyclopedic dictionaries describe concepts (depending on the volume and addressee of the dictionary, more or less detailed scientific information is given), while explanatory dictionaries describe lexical meanings . Let's compare the interpretations in the "Dictionary of the Russian Language" (MAC) and the "Soviet Encyclopedic Dictionary" (SES) (M, 1986):
<…>ANTIMONY (lat. Stibium), Sb, chemical. element of group V is periodic. Mendeleev system, at. n. 51, at. m. 121.75. Name from tour surme. Forms several modifications. Ordinary S. (so-called gray) - bluish-white crystals. Density 6.69 g/cm 3, t pl. 630.5°C. Does not change in air. The most important mineral is stibnite (antimony luster). Component of alloys based on lead and tin (battery, printing, bearing, etc.), semiconductor. materials (SES).
ANTIMONY, -y, w. 1. Chemical element, silvery brittle metal (used in technology and medicine). 2. Dye for blackening hair, eyebrows, eyelashes [from Pers. surma - metal] (MAC).
A significant place in encyclopedic dictionaries is occupied by dictionary entries in which the heading word is proper names.
Here it is appropriate to recall the controversial remark of N. Z. Kotelova: “An encyclopedia is not a dictionary and has no relation to lexicography. The only reason to consider it a dictionary is the arrangement of the designations of the described realities in alphabetical order” (Kotelova 1976: 30). Today, lexicographers are increasingly inclined to a different point of view: “The main “hero” of a linguistic dictionary is the word, the main “character” of an encyclopedic dictionary is a thing, reality with its parameters. Linguists describe the existence of words, their forms and meanings, the authors of encyclopedias systematize the existence of reality with its things having spatio-temporal and other characteristics. But these two beings are not isolated from each other, and in fact, linguists are always forced to deal with the problems of things, and “encyclopedists” with the problems of words. passing through our consciousness is conditional, transparent, and sometimes elusive" (Elistratov 1997: 7). Reflection of the necessary extra-linguistic information in an explanatory dictionary only increases the information potential of a dictionary entry and makes it possible to more fully show different aspects of the existence of a word. This approach meets the current challenges of modern lexicography (see about this: Gak 1998; Kalakutskaya 1991; Kalakutskaya 1995; Krysin 1990; Sklyarevskaya 1994). This position is fully consistent with modern ideas about the constant interaction of linguistic and encyclopedic knowledge in the psychological structure of the meaning of a word: “The individual lexicon stores word forms and word meanings, which together act as a means of access to a person’s information base, which, in turn, ensures the formation of a psychological the structure of the meaning of a word at the intersection of system-wide meaning and the entire complex of knowledge and experiences, without which the word form remains simply a certain sequence of sounds or graphemes, and the system-wide meaning does not provide access to a certain fragment of the individual picture of the world" (Zalevskaya 1999: 167).
R. M. Frumkina correlates the typology of dictionaries with the model of linguistic consciousness, noting that practical lexicography “is ultimately focused on more or less naive perception. With the difference that dictionaries of a general type should be a kind of model of truly naive linguistic consciousness, i.e. that is, the linguistic consciousness of a non-reflective individual, and scientific dictionaries must be adequate both to the naive layer of the linguistic consciousness of a professional, and to the deeper part of this consciousness, i.e., to a special professional instinct" (Frumkina 1989: 45).
Modern researchers, developing the ideas of L.V. Shcherba, proceed from the fact that the typology of dictionaries, on the one hand, makes it possible to determine the status of each dictionary, and on the other hand, it has predictive power and opens up prospects for lexicographers. Thus, V.V. Morkovkin emphasizes that the typology of dictionaries should generate free (“Mendeleev’s”) places in the classification, allowing one to predict and create new types of dictionaries. Considering the impossibility of reducing the typology of dictionaries to classification according to one base, he proposes three types of bases for classification: “what”-bases, “how”-bases and “for whom”-bases. The first determine the object of the dictionary description, the second - the nature of the arrangement of the material, the method of detecting information, the third - the specifics of the dictionary in connection with the image of the addressee, his national, age, professional and other capabilities (Morkovkin 1983: 130-132).
P. N. Denisov believes that the typology of dictionaries is determined by four main coordinates: 1) linguistic (according to this coordinate, explanatory, ideographic and aspectual - synonymous, antonymic, homonymous, etc. - dictionaries are distinguished); 2) psychological, associated with the properties and characteristics of the user (at this coordinate, dictionaries for native speakers, for foreigners, for computers are distinguished); 3) semiotic (this coordinate specifies the sign specificity of the dictionary, the originality of the metalanguage, the set of means of recording information - fonts, highlighting, colors, tables, symbols); 4) sociological (this coordinate involves taking into account the characteristics of a given culture, a given society, a native speaker of a given language; for example, linguistic and cultural dictionaries and dictionaries for works of Russian classical literature of the 19th century are specially oriented towards this) (Denisov 1980: 210-211).
Emphasizing the targeted orientation of lexicographic products, Yu. A. Belchikov and G. Ya. Solganik propose a grouping of dictionaries, determined by the needs of potential users, among which the following main groups are distinguished: native speakers, students of a non-native language, linguists. Thus, different categories of native speakers (a special place among them belongs to students) are in dire need of “first lexicographic aid” dictionaries (explanatory, foreign words, spelling, spelling). Those who read texts for different purposes (literary editor, student, literature teacher, philologist researcher) have a need for dictionaries that provide information about the paradigmatic connections of words. Those who work on creating texts need dictionaries that provide information about the compatibility of words. At the same time, the task of creating a comprehensive explanatory normative and stylistic dictionary remains urgent (Belchikov, Solganik 1997).
V. G. Gak, bearing in mind the diversity of already created dictionaries and the possibility of the emergence of new types of lexicographic publications, notes the presence of more or less wide dictionary series within one type. The central type of lexicographic publications is the explanatory monolingual dictionary. In other dictionaries, as a rule, there is a combination of several typological features.
From the point of view of vocabulary selection, thesaurus-type dictionaries (as complete as possible) are contrasted with those in which vocabulary is selected according to certain parameters: a) by area of use (dictionaries of colloquial, vernacular vocabulary, dialectal, argot, terminological, poetic, etc.); b) from a historical perspective (dictionaries of archaisms, historicisms, neologisms); c) by origin (dictionaries of foreign words, internationalisms); d) by the characteristics of certain types of words (abbreviations, onomastics, occasional words); e) by source (dictionaries of individual authors).
From the point of view of disclosing individual aspects of a word (parameters), etymological, grammatical, spelling, spelling dictionaries, dictionaries of function words, etc. are distinguished.
From the point of view of revealing systemic relationships between words, nested, word-forming, homonymous, paronymic dictionaries (plane of expression) are distinguished; synonymous, antonymic dictionaries (content plan).
From the point of view of choosing a unit of description, the following are distinguished: a) dictionaries of morphemes, roots (a unit of description is smaller than a word); b) dictionaries of phrases, phraseological units, quotes, etc. (a unit of description is larger than a word).
From the point of view of describing a certain diachronic section, historical dictionaries and dictionaries of different eras of modern language are distinguished.
From the point of view of the functional aspect, words are distinguished: a) by frequency - frequency dictionaries, dictionaries of rare words; b) by stylistic use - dictionaries of metaphors, epithets, comparisons, expressive vocabulary: c) by normative characteristics - dictionaries of difficulties, correctness.
According to the direction of presentation of the material (with a deviation from the usual alphabetical one), the following are distinguished: a) based on the form, reverse dictionaries, rhyming dictionaries; b) based on the content, ideographic, thematic dictionaries. Each type of dictionary, which has its own central task, presupposes its own set of lexicographic solutions (Gak 1988: 44-46).
An attempt to construct a universal, in-depth and promising classification scheme for dictionaries was made by A. M. Tsyvin (Tsyvin 1978). Each classification object (dictionary) is proposed to be defined by eight characteristics, and therefore eight classification schemes are constructed. The elementary features on which the dictionary classification is based are head vocabulary block(left side of the dictionary) and development of the head vocabulary block(right side of the dictionary). Their combination forms a dictionary entry.
The first classification scheme is based on the relationship between the right and left sides of the dictionary. All dictionaries are divided into unilateral(having only the left side, for example, spelling, reverse) and bilateral. Bilateral (having a left and right side) are divided into transferable And untranslatable. Two-sided, non-translatable dictionaries either explain the meaning of a word or explain its form and function, with the left and right parts being in the same language. Explanatory dictionaries are all explanatory dictionaries. Explanatory are divided into functional (frequency, stylistic, dictionaries of difficulties, etc.) and form-explanatory, giving a complete grammatical description of the word (grammatical dictionaries).
It should be borne in mind that purely explanatory dictionaries do not exist; they necessarily contain explanatory information (about pronunciation, stylistic use, grammatical characteristics).
The second classification scheme is based on the way the head vocabulary block is arranged. On this basis, all dictionaries are divided into alphabetical And non-alphabetic. Alphabetical dictionaries are divided into strictly alphabetical (straight And reverse) And nesting(cf., for example, V. I. Dahl’s dictionary). Non-alphabetic dictionaries are divided into thematic(the words in them are arranged according to conceptual groups denoting certain fragments of the linguistic picture of the world) and statistical(the words in them are arranged in decreasing or increasing frequency).
The third classification scheme is based on the composition of the head vocabulary block. It contrasts lexicon(on the left side of the dictionary are words or parts of words) and phraser(phrases or sentences are presented on the left side of the dictionary). Lexicons are divided into glossaries(the head vocabulary block is equal to the word) and morphemaria(head vocabulary block equals morpheme).
The fourth classification scheme is based on the nature of the selection of the head vocabulary block (the left side of the dictionary). Contrasted in this scheme thesauri And athesauri. Thesauri reflect the entire vocabulary of a particular object without any selection. At the same time, general thesauri register all the words of a given language (which is practically impossible), while sectoral thesauri register words of a certain system (a particular dialect, a particular science, or a branch of production) without selecting them. Athesauruses are based on a specific sequential selection system.
Fifth classification scheme. In it, the main distinguishing feature is the display object. From this point of view, all dictionaries are divided into are common And private. General dictionaries are divided into dictionaries of the national language and dictionaries of the literary language, but in domestic lexicography there is no clear distinction between these two types. Private dictionaries, subdivided in turn into dictionaries of book language and dictionaries of non-book language, are represented by dictionaries of the language of the newspaper, dictionaries of the language of individual writers and individual works, and regional dictionaries.
The sixth classification scheme is based on the reflection of historical processes in the dictionary. From this point of view, all dictionaries are divided into synchronous And diachronic. In synchronous dictionaries, vocabulary is considered outside the movement of vocabulary. A diachronic dictionary reflects the dynamics of the vocabulary of a certain time period. Diachronic dictionaries are divided into promising, marking new words and meanings, and retrospective, which, in turn, are divided into etymological And historical.
The seventh classification scheme is based on the characteristics of the purpose and purpose of the dictionary. The main opposition here is the opposition educational dictionaries And reference dictionaries. Educational dictionaries, monolingual And bilingual, intended for language learners. A reference dictionary is considered as a type of dictionary where the reader can find help about any words whose meaning or use is unclear to him. Directory dictionaries are divided into regulatory, defining the exemplary use of linguistic means, and descriptive, as fully as possible describing the existing word usage of the entire language or its fragment.
The eighth classification scheme is related to what words are presented on the left side of the dictionary - proper names or common nouns. The main contrast here is:
onomasticons - appellatives. Onomasticons are divided into anthroponymic And non-anthroponymic(For example, toponymic) dictionaries.
The presented classification allows us to give a comprehensive description of all dictionaries of the Russian language and compare them according to the same type of differential features. For example, “Explanatory Dictionary of the Russian Language” by D. N. Ushakov is characterized as explanatory direct strictly alphabetical regular glossary athesaurus of a literary language of synchronous type and scientific-normative reference dictionary (appellative). This characteristic of each dictionary accurately determines its place in the system of lexicographic publications and adequately reflects the specifics of its structure and information potential. The predictive capabilities of the proposed classification are also obvious.
The multi-aspect and multi-tier nature of the presented scientific typologies of lexicographic publications does not allow using them for the purpose of practical arrangement of material.
The typology of philological dictionaries developed by the publishing house "Russian Language" (Current state and development trends of domestic lexicography 1988: 214-218) is of a purely practical nature. It is based on the topic, the addressee of the dictionary and the volume of the dictionary:
I. Dictionaries describing the lexical system of the Russian language. 1. Explanatory dictionaries of various sizes for different categories of readers. 2. Dictionaries of new words. 3. Dictionaries of foreign words. 4. Dictionaries that reflect the systematic relationships between words (aspect dictionaries): dictionaries of synonyms, antonyms, homonyms, paronyms. 5. Dictionaries of phraseology and proverbs. 6. Dictionaries on onomastics and toponymy. II. Dictionaries describing the grammatical system of the Russian language. III. Dictionaries of compatibility. IV. Dictionaries on word formation. V. Dictionaries on spelling. VI. Spelling dictionaries. VII. Dictionaries of difficulties. VIII. Dictionaries of etymology. IX. Historical dictionaries. X. Dictionaries of the language of writers. XI. Reference books on dictionary literature. XII. Dictionaries of linguistic terms. XIII. Monuments of Russian lexicography. XIV. Dictionaries on linguistic statistics<…>.
Obviously, to create a three-dimensional lexicographic portrait of a word or group of words, it is necessary to access various types of dictionaries and various databases, which can be difficult to implement in practice. Computer lexicography of the XXI century. should change this situation: “The capabilities of computer lexicography should lead to the fact that in the future the difference between a dictionary index and a ready-made dictionary should decrease and ultimately disappear: countless different types of dictionaries should be generated programmatically from a lexicographically processed automated dictionary index” (Andryushchenko 1986 : 40). Undoubtedly, new types of dictionaries will appear to meet the ever-increasing needs of users.
ASPECTS OF LEXICOGRAPHICAL DESCRIPTION OF A WORD
IN DICTIONARIES OF VARIOUS TYPES
Dictionaries are divided into encyclopedic, containing reference information about certain realities, and linguistic, containing information about linguistic units. We will consider only linguistic dictionaries.
Linguistic dictionaries can be divided into types on several grounds: a) according to the coverage of linguistic material, b) according to the belonging of the units reflected in the dictionary to that or.
A different level of language structure; c) by the arrangement of words; d) according to the purpose of the dictionary.
Based on the coverage of language material, dictionaries are divided into multilingual and monolingual. Among multilinguals, the main place is occupied by bilinguals, but sometimes there are also trilinguals, less often - with a large number of languages. Among monolinguals, the following subtypes are distinguished. Firstly, dictionaries that cover all the vocabulary available to a lexicographer with maximum completeness - the so-called treasure dictionaries. Secondly, dictionaries of a literary language, or normative ones. Thirdly, dialectal, covering the vocabulary of one regional dialect or the dialectal vocabulary of all dialects of a given language. Fourthly, special dictionaries, covering a limited group of vocabulary: terms of a particular industry, foreign words, proper names, etc. etc. Fourthly, dictionaries of an idiolect - the language of an individual, most often - dictionaries of the language of a writer.
The very word “dictionary” already seems to indicate that this type of scientific work reflects the lexical level of the structure of the language. But there are also phraseological dictionaries, dictionaries of morphemes, dictionaries of elementary syntactic structures.
According to the arrangement of words, the most common type is represented by dictionaries arranged in direct alphabetical order. This is the most convenient order for practical use of the dictionary. For linguists, it may be necessary to have a dictionary with the vocabulary arranged in reverse alphabetical order, that is, not according to the first, but according to the last letter of the word: since in the Russian language grammatical and, to a large extent, word-formative information is concentrated at the end of the word, it is convenient to use such dictionaries study the corresponding properties of words. In addition, there is a nested order of words, when all related words are located in one dictionary entry. This order gives a clear idea of the place of the word in the word-formation system of the language, but creates many inconveniences in terms of practical use of the dictionary and searching for the right word.
Finally, there is a thematic order of words. It should be noted, however, that root words in a nested arrangement and the names of topics in a thematic arrangement are also given in alphabetical order.
The most important is the classification of linguistic dictionaries according to their function and purpose. The most important type, which plays the most noticeable practical role, are explanatory dictionaries, the multilingual variety of which is called translated. But along with Russian-English and English-Russian, Russian-German and German-Russian and other dictionaries used for translation, there are also dictionaries in which the word is “translated” into the same language, interpreted using synonyms, indications of antonyms , generic relations, etc. These are actually explanatory dictionaries. Their purpose is to help the reader clarify this or that word in their native language: its meaning, usage, stylistic connotation, etc. Their necessity is due to the fact that the vocabulary of any person is limited, and each of us may encounter an unfamiliar word in our native language, may incorrectly assess the relationship of the most ordinary word to the norm (for example, mistake a dialect word of a native dialect for a literary one), inaccurately understand the meaning of a particular word, etc. The habit of turning to an explanatory dictionary in case of doubt of this kind is one of the signs of speech culture. If we want to find out the origin of a word, then we need to turn to a different type of dictionary - etymological. The historical fate of the word is traced through the materials of written monuments by a historical dictionary. The function of a frequency dictionary is to reflect the frequency of a word. The function of word-formation is to describe the word-formation connections of a lexical unit. For information about the correct spelling of a word, a spelling dictionary is used; for information about the correct pronunciation, a spelling dictionary is used. An ideographic dictionary is designed to reflect the semantic halo of a word, its lexical environment. The so-called dictionaries of correctness are especially necessary when there are variants of the norm, variants of the use of words and expressions in the language: they help to choose the desired variant.
More on the topic § 13. Classification of linguistic dictionaries:
- Lexicography. Subject of lexicography. Linguistic and non-linguistic dictionaries. Explanatory and aspect dictionaries.
- Verification test No. 28. “Linguistic dictionaries of the Russian language”
- O.S. AKHMANOVA. DICTIONARY OF LINGUISTIC TERMS. Second edition, stereotypical. PUBLISHING HOUSE "SOVIET ENCYCLOPEDIA * MOSCOW-1969, 1969
Dictionaries are a type of publication that will be useful to any native speaker. Someone turns to them to find out the meaning of a new word, someone looks at the translation of a word into another language, someone chooses a synonym, and much more. A dictionary is a book that contains language units, systematized in a certain order, usually alphabetical. They may be written in one, two or more languages.
The science that deals with compiling dictionaries is called lexicography. In addition to the direct description of language units, it is engaged in their collection and systematization. In general, the function of dictionaries can be described as follows: recording and storing knowledge about the world or language. Dictionaries, due to their diversity, require careful classification.
General classification
So, below we will consider the division of all dictionaries.
According to their content, all dictionaries can be divided into two groups:
- linguistic (philological) dictionaries. Their function is to provide information about linguistic units from different points of view. For example, explanatory dictionaries, synonym dictionaries, word-formation dictionaries, etc.
- encyclopedic dictionaries. They contain information about a variety of phenomena and concepts. For example, Collier's Encyclopedia, F.A. Encyclopedic Dictionary. Brockhaus and I.A. Ephron, Encyclopedia Britannica, etc.
The difference between these types of dictionaries can be seen in the example of specific dictionary entries. For example, in a classic explanatory dictionary a word is given, then its grammatical features, direct interpretation and examples of use. An encyclopedic dictionary usually gives the word, its origin, a more specific definition, varieties, etc. Thus, the word “water” in the first dictionary will be given in several meanings, one of which is figurative; in the second dictionary it will be described from a chemical point of view.
Based on the principle of vocabulary selection, the following are distinguished:
- dictionaries-thesauruses. They present all the vocabulary of the language and examples of their use in context. For example, the Oxford Dictionary, which contains more than 300 thousand entries.
- private dictionaries. They contain vocabulary selected according to certain criteria. For example, a dictionary of paronyms, a terminological dictionary, a dictionary of slang, etc.
According to the method of describing units, dictionaries are divided into:
- are common. In such dictionaries, language units are described in several aspects. Such dictionaries include: explanatory dictionaries, reference dictionaries, etc.
- special. Words are described from one point of view: origin (etymological), pronunciation (orthoepic); education (word formation)
Dictionaries are divided from the point of view of the unit being described:
- morphemic. For example, dictionaries of root morphemes, frequency word-formation dictionaries, explanatory dictionaries of affixal morphemes, word-formation dictionaries.
- dictionaries in which the unit is the word. For example, a spelling dictionary, an explanatory dictionary, a dictionary of synonyms, etc.
- dictionaries in which the unit being described is larger than a word. For example, a dictionary of phraseological units, a dictionary of popular expressions, a dictionary of proverbs and sayings, etc.
According to the order of entries, dictionaries are divided into:
- alphabetical. This type of dictionary is the most common, since this arrangement of units makes it easy to find the necessary dictionary entry. This includes most linguistic dictionaries: explanatory, spelling, spelling, etc.
- ideographic. Information in such dictionaries is organized by topic. It is rarely found in its pure form. Dictionaries of synonyms and antonyms are built according to alphabetical and thematic criteria. In its pure form in the Russian language there is an ideographic dictionary edited by O.S. Baranova. The publication consists of departments, sections, subsections and articles, which are provided with links, and at the end there is an alphabetical index.
- associative. One of the new types of dictionaries. Words are arranged according to associations. In Russian lexicography, the most famous ones were published under the editorship of A.A. Leontyeva, Yu.N. Karaulova, G.A. Cherkasova.
Dictionaries are divided depending on the number of languages presented in the publication:
- monolingual. The name speaks for itself: the dictionary is compiled in a specific national language. For example, an explanatory dictionary, a paronym dictionary, a phraseological dictionary, etc.
- bilingual. Dictionary in two languages. This includes all kinds of translation dictionaries: English-Russian, German-Russian, Turkish-Russian dictionary, etc.
- multilingual. They are less common than the previous ones. Information is presented in more than two languages. For example, “Multilingual technical dictionary: German-English-Finnish-Swedish-Russian.”
According to the purpose of use, dictionaries are divided into:
- scientific. They are used for scientific purposes by scientists, specialists in a certain field of science. These include: grammatical, historical dictionaries, dictionaries of terms, etc.
- educational. This includes mini-dictionaries of various genres. They are used for educational purposes. They differ from scientific dictionaries in their more accessible language and fewer units represented. For example, a school phraseological, spelling, explanatory dictionary, dictionary of accents, etc.
- transferable. They are used to convey linguistic units of one language through another language. For example, Russian-Italian, Spanish-Russian, Russian-Kazakh dictionary.
- reference. Such dictionaries are intended for a native speaker who can seek reference information about a language unit. For example, “Antiquity from A to Z. Dictionary-reference book”, “Dictionary-reference book on punctuation”, etc.
In Russian lexicography there is no single classification of dictionaries accepted by all scientists. The first attempts to systematize the types of dictionaries belonged to the great linguist L. V. Shcherba. The classification presented above covers only the general principles of the distribution of dictionaries by type. This division is not exhaustive, but gives a general idea of the types of dictionaries.
