THIS IS AMERICA - Dictionaries in the United States

THIS IS AMERICA - Dictionaries in the United States
By Jarilyn Watson

Broadcast: Monday, March 08, 2004

(THEME)

VOICE ONE:

Welcome to THIS IS AMERICA, in VOA Special English. I'm Steve Ember.

VOICE TWO:

And I'm Phoebe Zimmermann. This week -- a look inside the world of dictionaries.

(THEME)

 
Graphic¹ Image
VOICE ONE:

If you call someone "fat," spelled F-A-T, it means overweight. But if you call someone "phat," spelled P-H-A-T, it means highly good looking. Some dictionaries now include this word as slang.

The editors of Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary explained how it reached their Eleventh Edition published last year.

VOICE TWO:

The editors read everything they can to search for new words and meanings. They keep electronic records. They also record words on individual citation² cards. Over the years, their company has collected more than 15,000,000 citations³. Editors continually consider and reconsider them for placement in their dictionaries.

The editors found enough uses of "phat" over time to judge the word to be popular and long lasting⁴. So they added it to the more than 225,000 explanations of words and phrases in the Collegiate.

VOICE ONE:

One of the early uses of "phat" that they found in print appeared in a magazine in 1994. A writer used it in relation to hip-hop music to mean excellent.

But usage can change by the time a word appears in a dictionary. This is especially true of slang. Some teen-agers say phat is an old word already.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

Many of the 10,000 new words in the Eleventh Edition of the Collegiate Dictionary involve computers. Among them is the term drag-and-drop. This means to move a computer file across a screen.

Technology terms like this are an example of how dictionaries show the influence of the times. Another example is the word "chairperson." It first appeared in the Random⁵ House Webster's College Dictionary in the nineteen-seventies. It recognized that women as well as men serve as leaders.

"Carjacking" entered dictionaries in the 1990's. To carjack means to take someone's car by force.

The Fourth Edition of the Webster's New World College Dictionary also includes "mosh." This is a way to dance to heavy metal music. Dancers crash into each other in a mosh pit in front of the band.

VOICE ONE:

Just because a word enters the dictionary does not mean it will stay. An example is "Macarena."

(MUSIC)

Many people did the Macarena dance. The Random House Webster's College Dictionary listed Macarena in 1997. But a year later, this word disappeared ... much like the dance itself.

VOICE TWO:

There is a word that the McDonald's Corporation would like to see disappear from the Eleventh Edition of Merriam-Webster's Collegiate. The word is "McJob." It is defined as a job with low pay and little chance for improvement. It is meant to describe the sort of job that a worker who prepares fast food might have.

But the chairman and chief executive officer of McDonald's, Jim Cantalupo, denounced this definition. He said it insults the 12,000,000 people who work for McDonald's. Also, the company itself uses the term "McJob" in its employment program for people with mental and physical disabilities.

But editors of dictionaries say they do not invent words, they only record the ones people use.

VOICE ONE:

Dictionaries usually list their number of entries instead of their number of words. No one can say how many words are in the English language. There are always new ones, and new uses for old ones. Some words disappear. Others reappear with a different meaning. Then there are all the new groupings of words into phrases with meanings of their own.

College dictionaries have about two-hundred-thousand or more definitions. This compares with 300,0000 or 400,000 in many unabridged dictionaries.

Today many people use the Internet to look up words. Over the centuries, many people have looked to dictionaries to settle arguments about the correct way to use a word. But dictionaries these days do not judge how a word should be used. They simply describe how people use them. and Random House, for example, have free online services. Two others are dictionary.com and yourdictionary.com. Some online dictionaries let users also hear how to say words.

VOICE TWO:

Some dictionaries are limited to subject areas. For example, Artlex.com provides free definitions for more than three-thousand terms related to art. The address is www.artlex.com.

There are many other kinds of dictionaries online, in print or both. There are biographical dictionaries of people and geographical⁶ dictionaries of places.

OK, time for a question. Can you think of a word that you would find in both a medical dictionary and a music dictionary, but with different meanings? Keep listening -- we'll tell you what we thought of.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

Now we step back 400 years in the history of dictionary making.

In 1604, a British school director named Robert Cawdrey produced a book that defined about 3,000 English words. These came from other languages.

More than a century later, the writer Samuel Johnson published what he called a "Dictionary of the English Language." It appeared in 1855. Then, in 1791, another Englishman, John Walker, also produced a dictionary.

An American, Noah Webster, wanted to create a dictionary as good as those others. Webster wanted to publish an American dictionary. And he did, in 1806, with a dictionary for schoolchildren. Experts say this work launched American dictionaries as we know them today.

VOICE TWO:

Noah Webster was born in 1858 in West Hartford, Connecticut. He became a teacher and studied law. He did not like the books he was supposed to use to teach. So he created many American schoolbooks. Later he became a political journalist. Historians say that after a few years, he returned to producing schoolbooks because he got tired of political disputes.

His first dictionary, in 1806, was called "A Compendious⁷ Dictionary of the English Language." The next year, he published a shorter version, a dictionary "Compiled for the Use of Common Schools." A new version appeared in 1817.

VOICE ONE:

After that Webster produced what he called "An American Dictionary of the English Language." It was published in 1828. It contained 70,000 definitions. It was really two books. He corrected and enlarged it into what became known as "Webster's Unabridged."

Webster proved himself untraditional as a maker⁸ of English language dictionaries. He included terms popular only in America. He spelled some words in untraditional ways. The same was true for the ways he listed to say words and to use them.

Some critics denounced his work. They did not understand that Noah Webster had established the beginnings of many American dictionaries of the future.

VOICE TWO:

Noah Webster died in 1843. Two printers in Worcester, Massachusetts, bought the rights to continue his dictionary and publish their own. The two were brothers, Charles and George Merriam.

Today the dictionary publishers at the Merriam-Webster company note that many of their competitors use the name "Webster." But their company is able to claim a historical link.

Over the centuries, many people have looked to dictionaries to settle arguments about the correct way to use a word. But dictionaries these days do not judge how a word should be used. They simply describe how people use them. They will, however, often warn if a word is considered offensive.

VOICE ONE:

It would be interesting to know what the man whose name appears on so many modern dictionaries would think of them. They follow the spirit of the times. But so did Noah Webster. Who knows, maybe he would have included phat, P-H-A-T, in his dictionaries, too.

(MUSIC)

Our program was written by Jerilyn Watson. I'm Steve Ember.

VOICE TWO:

And I'm Phoebe Zimmermann. Earlier, we asked if you could think of a word with unrelated meanings in both a medical dictionary and a music dictionary. We thought of one, organ. Our producer, Caty Weaver⁹, gets the credit.

VOICE ONE:

Join us again next week for THIS IS AMERICA, in VOA Special English.

1 graphic   

adj.生动的，形象的，绘画的，文字的，图表的

参考例句：

• The book gave a graphic description of the war.这本书生动地描述了战争的情况。
• Distinguish important text items in lists with graphic icons.用图标来区分重要的文本项。

2 citation   

n.引用，引证，引用文；传票

参考例句：

• He had to sign the proposition for the citation.他只好在受奖申请书上签了字。
• The court could issue a citation and fine Ms. Robbins.法庭可能会发传票，对罗宾斯女士处以罚款。

3 citations   

n.引用( citation的名词复数 )；引证；引文；表扬

参考例句：

• The apt citations and poetic gems have adorned his speeches. 贴切的引语和珠玑般的诗句为他的演说词增添文采。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Some dictionary writers use citations to show what words mean. 有些辞典的编纂者用引文作例证以解释词义。 来自辞典例句

4 lasting   

adj.永久的，永恒的；vbl.持续，维持

参考例句：

• The lasting war debased the value of the dollar.持久的战争使美元贬值。
• We hope for a lasting settlement of all these troubles.我们希望这些纠纷能获得永久的解决。

5 random   

adj.随机的；任意的；n.偶然的(或随便的)行动

参考例句：

• The list is arranged in a random order.名单排列不分先后。
• On random inspection the meat was found to be bad.经抽查，发现肉变质了。

6 geographical   

adj.地理的；地区(性)的

参考例句：

• The current survey will have a wider geographical spread.当前的调查将在更广泛的地域范围內进行。
• These birds have a wide geographical distribution.这些鸟的地理分布很广。

7 compendious   

adj.简要的，精简的

参考例句：

• At the end,a compendious sum-up and an expectation were brought out.最后对全文进行了扼要的总结，并提出展望。
• He made compendious introduction to the aluminum foil industry of Germany and France.他对德国与法国的铝箔工业作了扼要的介绍。

8 maker   

n.制造者，制造商

参考例句：

• He is a trouble maker，You must be distant with him.他是个捣蛋鬼，你不要跟他在一起。
• A cabinet maker must be a master craftsman.家具木工必须是技艺高超的手艺人。

9 weaver   

n.织布工；编织者

参考例句：

• She was a fast weaver and the cloth was very good.她织布织得很快，而且布的质量很好。
• The eager weaver did not notice my confusion.热心的纺织工人没有注意到我的狼狈相。