Abstract
Bilingual dictionaries play an important role in the standardisation of a language and are often the first dictionary type to be compiled for a given speech community. However, this may never lead to an underestimation of the role and importance of monolingual descriptive dictionar-ies in the early lexicographic development of a language. In the planning of first descriptive dic-tionaries the choice of the proper subtype and a consistent application of theoretical principles should be regarded as of extreme importance. Even the compilation of a restricted descriptive dic-tionary should be done according to similar theoretical principles as those applying to comprehen-sive dictionaries. This contribution indicates a number of dilemmas confronting the lexicographer during the compilation of restricted monolingual descriptive dictionaries. Attention is given to the role of lexicographic functions and the choice and presentation of lexicographic data, with special reference to the presentation of certain types of polysemous senses which are subjected to frequen-cy of use restrictions. Emphasis is placed on the value of a heterogeneous article structure and a micro-architecture in the articles of restricted dictionaries. Keywords: access structure, data distribution, frame structure, fre-quency of use, heterogeneous article structure, lexicographic func-tions, lexicographic process, micro-architecture, monolingual diction-ary, polysemy, semantic data, text block, user-friendliness, user-perspec-tive, vertical architectonic extension
Highlights
The planning and compilation of a dictionary may never be done randomly
At the centre of all the decisions regarding the compilation of dictionaries stands the person who has to open the dictionary and use it. This dictionary user is no longer the well-known stranger it used to be because lexicographers are fully aware of the compelling need to identify their potential target user before they even start with the planning of a dictionary
Modern-day lexicography demands a clear indication of the genuine purpose of each dictionary and the fulfilment of that genuine purpose is only possible if the intended target user can achieve an optimal retrieval of information from the dictionary
Summary
At the centre of all the decisions regarding the compilation of dictionaries stands the person who has to open the dictionary and use it This dictionary user is no longer the well-known stranger it used to be because lexicographers are fully aware of the compelling need to identify their potential target user before they even start with the planning of a dictionary. Within a multilingual environment it is extremely difficult to decide whether a monolingual or a multilingual dictionary would be the better choice for a given speech community. This question should not be isolated from the bigger lexicographic picture and the real lexicographic needs of the relevant speech community. Dilemmas and decisions in the planning and compilation of a monolingual dictionary
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