Dictionary

dictionaryese en · NOUN

Pronunciation

• (US) audio
• /ˈdɪk.ʃən.ɹɪˈiːz/ (Received-Pronunciation)
• /ˈdɪk.ʃəˌnɛ.ɹiˈiz/ (Canada, General-American)
• /ˈdɪk.ʃəˌnə.ɹɪˈiːz/ (Received-Pronunciation)

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *deyḱ- Proto-Indo-European *-eti Proto-Indo-European *déyḱeti Proto-Italic *deikō Latin dīcō Proto-Indo-European *-tis Proto-Indo-European *-Hō Proto-Indo-European *-tiHō Proto-Italic *-tiō Latin -tiō Latin dictiō Proto-Indo-European *-yósder. Proto-Italic *-āzios Latin -āriusnom. Latin -ārium ▲ Latin dictiō ▲ Latin -āriusnom. Latin -ārius Latin dictiōnārius? Medieval Latin dictiōnāriumlbor. Middle English dixionare English dictionary Proto-Indo-European *-iskos Proto-Germanic *-iskaz Proto-West Germanic *-iskbor. Late Latin -iscus ▲ Vulgar Latin -iscus Latin -ēnsis Old French -eisbor. Middle English -eys English -ese English dictionaryese From dictionary + -ese (suffix denoting jargon used in a particular context).

Meanings

1. (informal, uncountable) The style of language used in dictionary definitions, characterized by dry, straightforward, and occasionally awkward phrasing.
   • 'Cause to die' is immediately recognizable as dictionaryese, which is to say that dictionaries do not, in general, honor the condition that definitions must be couched in the syntax of surface English. 1975, Jerry A[lan] Fodor, “The Structure of the Internal Code: Some Linguistic Evidence”, in The Language of Thought, New York, N.Y.: Thomas Y[oung] Crowell Company, →ISBN, page 127:
   • Such an approach has two immediate advantages: it disposes of the need to present what is not fact as fact; and it goes some way to seeing off the need to employ dictionaryese, the crabbed and clipped prose-style that, in many reference-books, only ossifies its subject-matter. 1981, Justin Wintle, “Introduction”, in Justin Wintle, editor, Makers of Modern Culture, New York, N.Y.: Facts on File, →ISBN, page xvi:
   • If I were defining "hella" without using substitutability, I would probably come up with something long-winded and full of dictionaryese, like "to an excessive degree." 2017, Kory Stamper, “Surfboard: On Defining”, in Word by Word: The Secret Life of Dictionaries, New York, N.Y.: Pantheon Books, →ISBN, page 103:
   • Oxford American’s usage notes are among the best I’ve found: clear, consistent, sensibly prescriptive, and up-to-date (it’s the only dictionary to acknowledge that “nonplussed” is frequently misused to mean “unperturbed”). Its rendering of slang into dictionaryese—“shake one's booty” is defined as “dance energetically”—is a thing of beauty. 2003 December 4, YiLing Chen-Josephson, “Word Up”, in Slate, New York, N.Y.: The Slate Group, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 22 Mar 2023:
   • For a concise dictionary the extent of the German vocabulary dealt with is commendable and fairly searching spot-checks in many fields have shown no serious gaps, but an English reviewer must be forgiven for commenting on the ‘dictionaryese’ of some of the English renderings. 1962, D. F. S. Scott, “Langenscheidts Handwörterbuch Deutsch–Englisch. Langenscheidt’s Concise Dictionary German–English. (Second Edition, Berlin 1960; pp. 672; published in England by Methuen; 17s. 6d.) [book review]”, in The Durham University Journal, volume LIV (New Series, volume XXIII), Durham, County Durham: Senate of the University of Durham, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 29 Jun 2022, page 86:
   • <https://www.dictionary.com/browse/sodomy> runs down to "Sexual intercourse that is not the union of the genital organs of a man and a woman", but in dictionaryese that /could/ mean one specific sexual intercourse that they're choosing not to describe. 2019 January 14, Robert Carnegie, “Homosexuality is more acceptable to atheists, than theists”, in alt.atheism (Usenet):

Forms

Synonyms

lexicographese

Translations (4)

pl żargon słownikowy (style of language used in dictionary definitions) · pt dicionarês (style of language used in dictionary definitions) · fi sanakirjakieli (style of language used in dictionary definitions) · mk речни́карски ја́зик (style of language used in dictionary definitions)