Az Eszterházy Károly Tanárképző Főiskola Tudományos Közleményei. 1996. Vol. 1. Eger Journal of English Studies.(Acta Academiae Paedagogicae Agriensis : Nova series ; Tom. 24)
Geoff Barnbrook: From description to prescription and back again
'use' of the words, are chosen to illustrate meanings that he has already selected for the words: they are attestations of authority for that meaning, but do not necessarily form the basis for it. The primary source of meaning is Johnson himself, relying on his own superior grasp of the language and embodying it in the dictionary as part of his 'struggles for our language'. This equation of the meaning of a word with the lexicographer's own actual or idealised usage exposes a major problem of lexicography. Even the lexicographer who relies on etymology for meaning is using an outside source whose authority, doubtful though its validity might be, has at times been generally agreed. The lexicographer who acts not as discoverer of meaning, but as the source of it, risks more than mere inaccuracy. Inaccurate dictionaries may not directly affect the ways in which native speakers use their mainstream vocabulary, but they are capable of misleading language learners, including even the native speaker in search of the meanings of more obscure words. 4.3 Johnson's definition strategies The sample of definition texts below, taken from the fourth edition of Johnson's Dictionary , shows his main definition strategies. It has been stripped of the other elements of the dictionary text etymology, illustrative quotations, authorial comment etc. FICKLE. 1. Changeable; unconstant; irresolute; wavering; unsteady; mutable; changeful; without steady adherence. 2. Not fixed; subject to vicissitude. FICKLENESS. Inconstancy; uncertainty; unsteadiness. FICKLY. Without certainty or stability. FICO. An act of contempt done with the fingers, expressing a fig for you. FICTILE. Moulded into form; manufactured by the potter. FICTION. 1. The act of feigning or inventing. 2. The thing feigned or invented. 3. A falsehood; a lye. FICTIOUS. Fictitious; imaginary; invented. FICTITIOUS. 1. Counterfeit; false; not genuine. 2. Feigned; imaginary. 24
