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If dictionaries just “described how words are used”, they would be filled with thousands of definitions for every word. They implicitly define them by choosing
by kortilla 4y ago
If dictionaries just “described how words are used”, they would be filled with thousands of definitions for every word.
They implicitly define them by choosing which definitions are to be trusted and which are “wrong”.
- rsynnott 4y agoThey pick which are most _commonly used_, in general. There is a reasonable argument that many of them are still a bit too stuck in a world where "it has to fit in a book" was a major concern, and are thus too aggressive in discarding rarely used definitions.