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Defining vocabulary
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<h2 id="differing-opinions">Differing opinions</h2> <p>Using a defining vocabulary is not without its problems, and some scholars have argued that it can lead to definitions which are insufficiently precise or accurate, or that words in the list are sometimes used in non-central meanings.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:2" href="#fn:2"><sup>2</sup></a> The more common view, however, is that the disadvantages are outweighed by the advantages,<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:3" href="#fn:3"><sup>3</sup></a><a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:4" href="#fn:4"><sup>4</sup></a> and there is some empirical research which supports this position.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:5" href="#fn:5"><sup>5</sup></a> Almost all English learner's dictionaries have a defining vocabulary, and these range in size between 2000 and 3000 words, for example: </p> <ul><li><i><a href="/facts/Longman_Dictionary_of_Contemporary_English/WrbmR6ko">Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English</a></i>: approximately 2,000 words</li> <li><i><a href="/facts/Macmillan_English_Dictionary_for_Advanced_Learners/w00LE06f">Macmillan English Dictionary for Advanced Learners</a></i>: approximately 2,500 words</li> <li><i><a href="/facts/Oxford_Advanced_Learner%2527s_Dictionary/nv9QD2ve">Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary</a></i>: approximately 3,000 words</li></ul> <p>It is possible that, in <a href="/facts/Electronic_dictionary/ISSyfDHu">electronic dictionaries</a> at least, the need for a controlled defining vocabulary will disappear. In some online dictionaries, such as the <i><a href="/facts/Macmillan_English_Dictionary_for_Advanced_Learners/w00LE06f">Macmillan English Dictionary for Advanced Learners</a></i>,<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:6" href="#fn:6"><sup>6</sup></a> every word in every definition is hyperlinked to its own entry, so that a user who is unsure of the meaning of a word in a definition can immediately see the definition for the word that is causing problems. However, this strategy works only if all the definitions are written in reasonably accessible language, which argues for some sort of defining vocabulary to be maintained in dictionaries aimed at language learners. </p><p>Intermediate-level language learners are likely to have receptive familiarity with most words in a typical 2,000-word defining vocabulary. To accommodate beginning-level learners, the defining vocabulary can be divided into two or more layers, where words in one layer are explained using only the simpler words from the previous layers.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:7" href="#fn:7"><sup>7</sup></a> This strategy is used in the <i>Learn These Words First</i> multi-layer dictionary, where a 360-word beginning-level defining vocabulary is used to explain a 2,000-word intermediate-level defining vocabulary, which in turn is used to define the remaining words in the dictionary.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:8" href="#fn:8"><sup>8</sup></a><a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:9" href="#fn:9"><sup>9</sup></a> </p> <h2 id="see-also">See also</h2> <ul><li><a href="/facts/Dictionary/klg2kL06">Dictionary</a></li> <li><a href="/facts/Core_glossary/jWSovqDw">Core glossary</a></li> <li><a href="/facts/Controlled_vocabulary/JcYKWx3H">Controlled Vocabulary</a></li> <li><a href="/facts/Advanced_learner%2527s_dictionary/baxm3gfc">Advanced learner's dictionary</a></li> <li><a href="/facts/Basic_English/pbIkSYn4">Basic English</a></li> <li>Appendix:Basic English word list</li> <li><a href="/facts/E-Prime/rxklu4S6">E-Prime</a></li></ul> <h2 id="notes">Notes</h2> <h2 id="external-links">External links</h2> <ul><li><a href="http://wiki.frath.net/Longman_Defining_Vocabulary">The Longman Defining Vocabulary (1988)</a>.</li> <li><a href="http://www.macmillandictionary.com/learn/clear-definitions.html">The Macmillan Defining Vocabulary</a>.</li> <li><a href="http://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/wordlist/english/oxford3000/">The Oxford 3000 Defining Vocabulary</a>.</li> <li><a href="http://learnthesewordsfirst.com">Learn These Words First: Multi-Layer Dictionary</a>.</li></ul> <h2 id="references">References</h2> <ol> <li id="fn:1"><p>"Johnson, Preface to the Dictionary". <a href="http://JackLynch.net/Texts/preface.html" target="_blank">http://JackLynch.net/Texts/preface.html</a> <a href="#fnref:1" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:2"><p>Bogaards, P., 'Dictionaries for learners of English', International Journal of Lexicography, 9/4, 1996: 289-291 <a href="#fnref:2" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:3"><p>Herbst, T., 'On the way to the perfect learner's dictionary',International Journal of Lexicography, 9/4, 1996: 324-326 <a href="#fnref:3" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:4"><p>Atkins, S. & Rundell, M., Oxford Guide to Practical Lexicography, Oxford University Press, 2008: 449-450 <a href="#fnref:4" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:5"><p>McCreary, D. & Amacker, E., 'Experimental research on college students' usage of two dictionaries: a comparison of the Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary and the Macmillan English Dictionary for Advanced Learners, in Corino, E. et al. (Eds), Proceedings of the XII Euralex Congress, 2006: 871-885 <a href="#fnref:5" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:6"><p>"Macmillan Dictionary | Free English Dictionary and Thesaurus". <a href="http://www.macmillandictionary.com" target="_blank">http://www.macmillandictionary.com</a> <a href="#fnref:6" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:7"><p>Bullock, D. 'NSM + LDOCE: A Non-Circular Dictionary of English', International Journal of Lexicography, 24/2, 2011: 226-240 <a href="#fnref:7" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:8"><p>"What is a Multi-Layer Dictionary?". <a href="http://learnthesewordsfirst.com/about/what-is-a-multi-layer-dictionary.html" target="_blank">http://learnthesewordsfirst.com/about/what-is-a-multi-layer-dictionary.html</a> <a href="#fnref:8" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:9"><p>Bullock, D. 'Using Minimal English (Minimal Spanish, etc.) for Non-circular Learners' Dictionaries', Minimal Languages in Action (ed. Cliff Goddard), May 25, 2021, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-64077-4 <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-64077-4" target="_blank">https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-64077-4</a> <a href="#fnref:9" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> </ol>