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==Origin==
Medieval Latin ''dictionarium'', from Late Latin ''diction''-, ''dictio'' word, from [[Latin]], [[speaking]]
*[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/16th_century 1526]
==Definitions==
*1: a [[reference]] source in print or electronic form containing [[words]] usually alphabetically arranged along with [[information]] about their [[forms]], pronunciations, [[functions]], etymologies, [[meanings]], and syntactical and idiomatic uses
*2: a reference [[book]] listing alphabetically terms or names important to a particular subject or [[activity]] along with [[discussion]] of their [[meanings]] and applications
==Description==
A '''dictionary''' (also called a wordbook, lexicon or vocabulary) is a collection of [[words]] in one or more specific [[languages]], often listed alphabetically, with usage [[information]], [[definitions]], etymologies, phonetics, pronunciations, and other [[information]]; or a book of words in one language with their equivalents in another, also known as a [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lexicon lexicon]. According to Nielsen (2008) a dictionary may be regarded as a lexicographical product that is characterised by [[three]] significant features: (1) it has been [[prepared]] for one or more [[functions]]; (2) it contains [[data]] that have been selected for the purpose of fulfilling those functions; and (3) its lexicographic [[structures]] link and establish [[relationships]] between the [[data]] so that they can meet the needs of users and fulfill the functions of the dictionary.
A broad distinction is made between general and [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Specialized_dictionaries specialized dictionaries]. Specialized dictionaries do not contain [[information]] about [[words]] that are used in [[language]] for general [[purposes]]—words used by ordinary people in everyday situations. Lexical items that [[describe]] concepts in specific fields are usually called terms instead of [[words]], although there is no [[consensus]] whether [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lexicology lexicology] and terminology are two [[different]] fields of [[study]]. In [[theory]], general dictionaries are supposed to be [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Semasiological semasiological], mapping word to [[definition]], while specialized dictionaries are supposed to be [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Onomasiological onomasiological], first identifying [[concepts]] and then establishing the terms used to designate them. In [[practice]], the two approaches are used for both types. There are other types of dictionaries that don't fit neatly in the above distinction, for instance bilingual ([[translation]]) dictionaries, dictionaries of synonyms ([http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thesaurus thesauri]), or rhyming dictionaries. The word dictionary (unqualified) is usually [[understood]] to refer to a monolingual general-purpose dictionary.
A [[different]] [[dimension]] on which dictionaries (usually just general-purpose ones) are sometimes distinguished is whether they are [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prescription_and_description prescriptive or descriptive], the latter being in [[theory]] largely based on [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linguistic_corpus linguistic corpus] studies—this is the case of most [[modern]] dictionaries. However, this distinction cannot be upheld in the strictest sense. The choice of [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Headword headwords] is [[considered]] itself of prescriptive nature; for instance, dictionaries avoid having too many [[taboo]] words in that position. Stylistic indications (e.g. ‘informal’ or ‘vulgar’) present in many modern dictionaries is considered less than objectively descriptive as well.
Although the first recorded dictionaries date back to [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sumer Sumerian] times (these were bilingual dictionaries), the systematic [[study]] of dictionaries as objects of scientific interest themselves is a 20th century enterprise, called [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lexicography lexicography], and largely initiated by [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ladislav_Zgusta Ladislav Zgusta]. The [[birth]] of the new discipline was not without controversy, the practical dictionary-makers being sometimes accused of "astonishing" lack of method and critical-self reflection.[5]
==Origin==
Medieval Latin ''dictionarium'', from Late Latin ''diction''-, ''dictio'' word, from [[Latin]], [[speaking]]
*[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/16th_century 1526]
==Definitions==
*1: a [[reference]] source in print or electronic form containing [[words]] usually alphabetically arranged along with [[information]] about their [[forms]], pronunciations, [[functions]], etymologies, [[meanings]], and syntactical and idiomatic uses
*2: a reference [[book]] listing alphabetically terms or names important to a particular subject or [[activity]] along with [[discussion]] of their [[meanings]] and applications
==Description==
A '''dictionary''' (also called a wordbook, lexicon or vocabulary) is a collection of [[words]] in one or more specific [[languages]], often listed alphabetically, with usage [[information]], [[definitions]], etymologies, phonetics, pronunciations, and other [[information]]; or a book of words in one language with their equivalents in another, also known as a [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lexicon lexicon]. According to Nielsen (2008) a dictionary may be regarded as a lexicographical product that is characterised by [[three]] significant features: (1) it has been [[prepared]] for one or more [[functions]]; (2) it contains [[data]] that have been selected for the purpose of fulfilling those functions; and (3) its lexicographic [[structures]] link and establish [[relationships]] between the [[data]] so that they can meet the needs of users and fulfill the functions of the dictionary.
A broad distinction is made between general and [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Specialized_dictionaries specialized dictionaries]. Specialized dictionaries do not contain [[information]] about [[words]] that are used in [[language]] for general [[purposes]]—words used by ordinary people in everyday situations. Lexical items that [[describe]] concepts in specific fields are usually called terms instead of [[words]], although there is no [[consensus]] whether [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lexicology lexicology] and terminology are two [[different]] fields of [[study]]. In [[theory]], general dictionaries are supposed to be [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Semasiological semasiological], mapping word to [[definition]], while specialized dictionaries are supposed to be [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Onomasiological onomasiological], first identifying [[concepts]] and then establishing the terms used to designate them. In [[practice]], the two approaches are used for both types. There are other types of dictionaries that don't fit neatly in the above distinction, for instance bilingual ([[translation]]) dictionaries, dictionaries of synonyms ([http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thesaurus thesauri]), or rhyming dictionaries. The word dictionary (unqualified) is usually [[understood]] to refer to a monolingual general-purpose dictionary.
A [[different]] [[dimension]] on which dictionaries (usually just general-purpose ones) are sometimes distinguished is whether they are [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prescription_and_description prescriptive or descriptive], the latter being in [[theory]] largely based on [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linguistic_corpus linguistic corpus] studies—this is the case of most [[modern]] dictionaries. However, this distinction cannot be upheld in the strictest sense. The choice of [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Headword headwords] is [[considered]] itself of prescriptive nature; for instance, dictionaries avoid having too many [[taboo]] words in that position. Stylistic indications (e.g. ‘informal’ or ‘vulgar’) present in many modern dictionaries is considered less than objectively descriptive as well.
Although the first recorded dictionaries date back to [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sumer Sumerian] times (these were bilingual dictionaries), the systematic [[study]] of dictionaries as objects of scientific interest themselves is a 20th century enterprise, called [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lexicography lexicography], and largely initiated by [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ladislav_Zgusta Ladislav Zgusta]. The [[birth]] of the new discipline was not without controversy, the practical dictionary-makers being sometimes accused of "astonishing" lack of method and critical-self reflection.[5]
