Re: USAGE: -ic(al) Re: [CONLANG] Most developed conlang

* T. A. McLeay said on 2007-04-30 01:42:10 +0200
> taliesin the storyteller wrote:
> > * MorphemeAddict@WMCONNECT.COM said on 2007-04-29 01:07:02 +0200
>
> >> Actually the word is spelled "politically".  Your dictionary
> >> must be wrong.
> >
> > Dictionaries of English can't be wrong, as it is only the
> > dictionaries themselves that define how English is spelled.
>
> Actually, they can be. Dictionaries don’t define how English is spelt;
> usage defines English. Dictionaries are just a usually accurate and
> reliable record of usage for us to consult when we need to. (And yes,
> mistakes do happen: The New International Dictionary had the non-word
> _dord_ for a while. This didn’t make _dord_ a word.)
Ah, but some people started using _dord_ *as if* it was a word, ergo
making it one :) Anyway, dictionary-makers often add nonsense-words in
order to be able detect if anyone rips them off. If their nonsense-words
show up in other dictionaries they can then send out their squads of
rabid attack copyright-lawyers.


t., who had to sign a mountain of NDAs to get access to dictionaries and
text-collections needed for the master-project.

Reply