Frequently Asked Questions
Dictionaries
How has computer technology affected dictionary-making? |
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Computers have affected dictionaries in two major areas: production and research. On the production side, dictionaries can now be stored in databases, so that a change can be made very quickly, and changes that affect the entire dictionary can be done in one step.
New editions of dictionaries can be produced without having to re-typeset the entire work. Computers have already become important as a method for publishing dictionaries—in electronic form, instead of paper—and this will likely be increasingly important in the future.
For research, lexicographers can have instant access to corpora—huge electronic samples of English—and can thus look for examples of rare words, compare grammatical information, gather example sentences, and in general rely on real examples of English instead of having to fall back on personal impressions. They can also communicate rapidly with consultants across the world by using email.
Other questions in this section: What is a dictionary?
What are people referring to when they talk about the 'Oxford Dictionary'?
Are dictionaries always in alphabetical order?
Are dictionaries really necessary?
Are lexicographers good spellers?
Are other languages besides English recorded in huge multi-volume dictionaries?
Do dictionary-makers ever make mistakes?
Do you include words used on the Internet?
How can I access OED Online?
How do you decide if a new word should go in an Oxford dictionary?
How do you decide what to include in a dictionary?
How do you know what a word means?
How has computer technology affected dictionary-making?
How have dictionaries changed over the years?
How will a dictionary look in 2050?
How will revision affect the size of the OED?
Is there an official committee which regulates the English language?
What skills and talents does a lexicographer need?
When will the Third Edition of the OED be published?
Will you put the word I have invented into the dictionary?
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