Definitions of Some Sensitive Medical Words in Dictionaries of English

The present article examines the definitions of six medical words (warfarin, thalidomide, lobotomy, gastroscope, cystoscope, paroxysm) in dictionaries of English. The entries in twentyone non-specialist dictionaries were analysed and compared with corresponding passages in eleven medical dictionaries. The formulation of the definitions turned out to vary quite considerably from one volume to another. The variation may in some instances stem from the difficulty of deciding what is linguistic information, what encyclopedic, but the sensitive aspects of the six words are likely to be another contributory factor. The presentation of the medical terms would in many instances benefit from further refinement. The need for cooperation between lexicographers and medical experts is evident. Consultation of medical dictionaries may also be helpful and suggest certain items of information for inclusion in nonspecialist works as well.