the Dictionary
...of all D “a new English D on historical principles” Publication began 1884, final part 1928 10 years after publication began “the OED” was added to original name Tremendous project, to record all words, how they are and have been used, involved 70 years research 1000 British and American scholars collected 5 million quotations from 5000 writers D = published book in alphabetical order of words in a language Monolingual d, words explained and defined in same language Bilingual d, translated Term also applied, any usually alphabetic work of reference containing specialised info about particular subject art, science - D of music Modern d usually provide - pronunciation, spelling, syllables, part of speech, source, illustration sometimes, synonyms However, D of language never be complete Old words fall in to disuse New words constantly created Those surviving frequently change meanings D today available at all levels Standard D include about 400 000 words Desk d seldom include more than 125 000, these not limited by good/bad, they constructed on frequency of usage This based on actually counting how often words used, everyday writing, words used most often included All supply great deal info, the words spelt correctly divided into syllables acceptable pronunciation, source and part of speech Several meanings listed ...