3 ms·

Surprised that no comment mentioned that there is a standard term (not a word :P) for the set of words that denominates a particular concept: nominal syntagm. S

Surprised that no comment mentioned that there is a standard term (not a word :P) for the set of words that denominates a particular concept: nominal syntagm. Such as "boiling water" and also "that green parrot we saw yesterday over the left branch". Also the slider examples are abysmal. "I love you", "Go home" and "How are you" are not words by any stretch of imagination. For someone who makes word games, I don't see a particularly deep love of words here. Edit: Obligatory reference to Borges's Tlön: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tl%C3%B6n,_Uqbar,_Orbis_Tertius https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tl%C3%B6n,_Uqbar,_Orbis_Tertiu...

michaeld123 8mo ago
Added a note: "'I love you' isn't opaque, but it's tight enough to put on a tile." The familiar end of the spectrum picks up collocations that are transparent but loaded — I'm not claiming they're words in the traditional sense, but they're useful vocabulary for word games, which is where I'm coming from.
- medalblue 8mo ago
  I thought that sentence seemed out of place when I read it. Didn't realize this was all AI slop. It all makes sense now.
- vunderba 8mo ago
  > "'I love you' isn't opaque, but it's tight enough to put on a tile." The problem with introducing phrase/sentences into a word game (let's take Scrabble) is that you'd spend half the night with your friends arguing over what is and is not acceptable with the only litmus test being its... corpus frequency?
  - wredcoll 8mo ago
    > what is and is not acceptable with the only litmus test being its... corpus frequency? How do you suppose we determine acceptability now?
    - backscratches 8mo ago
      Not with corpus frequency. Just has to exist a single time in agreed upon dictionary.
      - wredcoll 8mo ago
        And the dictionary chooses words based on... how often people use them?
        backscratches 8mo ago
        Dictionaries would be ruined if they could only use popular words. I guess you might be describing very early children's dictionaries, but I dont think that's your argument?
win311fwg 8mo ago
A nominal syntagm is a somewhat overlapping concept, but deviates slightly from the direct discussion taking place. The more appropriate standard term here is: open compound word. Or, as one might say casually: word.
georgefrowny 8mo ago
Funnily enough, "nominal syntagm" is, itself, not in the OED or Wiktionary. But Wiktionary has "syntagme nominal" as the French translation for "noun phrase". You really have to love the human messiness of language!

michaeld123 8mo ago

Added a note: "'I love you' isn't opaque, but it's tight enough to put on a tile." The familiar end of the spectrum picks up collocations that are transparent but loaded — I'm not claiming they're words in the traditional sense, but they're useful vocabulary for word games, which is where I'm coming from.

medalblue 8mo ago
I thought that sentence seemed out of place when I read it. Didn't realize this was all AI slop. It all makes sense now.
vunderba 8mo ago
> "'I love you' isn't opaque, but it's tight enough to put on a tile." The problem with introducing phrase/sentences into a word game (let's take Scrabble) is that you'd spend half the night with your friends arguing over what is and is not acceptable with the only litmus test being its... corpus frequency?
- wredcoll 8mo ago
  > what is and is not acceptable with the only litmus test being its... corpus frequency? How do you suppose we determine acceptability now?
  - backscratches 8mo ago
    Not with corpus frequency. Just has to exist a single time in agreed upon dictionary.
    - wredcoll 8mo ago
      And the dictionary chooses words based on... how often people use them?
      - backscratches 8mo ago
        Dictionaries would be ruined if they could only use popular words. I guess you might be describing very early children's dictionaries, but I dont think that's your argument?

win311fwg 8mo ago

A nominal syntagm is a somewhat overlapping concept, but deviates slightly from the direct discussion taking place. The more appropriate standard term here is: open compound word. Or, as one might say casually: word.

georgefrowny 8mo ago

Funnily enough, "nominal syntagm" is, itself, not in the OED or Wiktionary. But Wiktionary has "syntagme nominal" as the French translation for "noun phrase". You really have to love the human messiness of language!