Open AccessUnmuffling the 'muffel'
Author(s) -
Otto Hietsch
Publication year - 1981
Publication title -
linguistica
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.134
H-Index - 1
eISSN - 2350-420X
pISSN - 0024-3922
DOI - 10.4312/linguistica.21.1.209-225
Subject(s) - diction , insider , desk , lexicon , sight , wonder , linguistics , psychology , business , philosophy , law , political science , epistemology , social psychology , poetry , physics , astronomy
It is only once or twice in a lifetime that an individ ual may decide to buy himself an encyclopaedic dictionary. Whether.unilingual or bilingual, the purchase of a lexicon. is (punning unintentional) a weighty matter to consider, and guidance will invariably be sought from someone who is looked upon as an insider. However, a bookseller, with such an interesting customer in sight, will probably be more than ready to claim the virtues of precision-and all inclusiveness for the volume or volumes on the desk before him. Moreover, the pamphletsbrochures and other advertis ing matter brought out by a publisher cannot be expected to be less biased either, and prospective customers will find themselves waylaid by phrases like "with this diction ary we have reached the limits of lexicographical up-to dateness."