Merriam Webster Collegiate Dictionary Elevent Edition Users Guide (Merriam Webster,p72)

8/10/2019 Merriam Webster Collegiate Dictionary Elevent Edition Users Guide (Merriam Webster,p72)

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Merriam-Webster's

Collegiate

DictionaryELEVENTH EDITION

Users Guide

Merriam-Webster, Incorporated47 Federal Street

P. O. Box 281Springfield, MA 01102

www.Merriam-WebsterCollegiate.comwww.Merriam-Webster.com www.WordCentral.com

www.Merriam-WebsterUnabridged.com AOL keyword: MERRIAM


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A GENUINE MERRIAM-WEBSTER

The name Webster alone is no guarantee of excellence.

It is used by a number of publishers and may serve

mainly to mislead an unwary buyer.

Merriam-Webster is the name you should look for

when you consider the purchase of dictionaries or

other fine reference works. It carries the reputation

of a company that has been publishing since 1831

and is your assurance of quality and authority.

2003 by Merriam-Webster, Incorporated. All rights reserved. Websters Third New International and design,Merriam-Websters Collegiate, Merriam-Webster logo, and Bulls-eye design are registered trademarks ofMerriam-Webster, Incorporated. Microsoft, Windows, and Microsoft Internet Explorer are registered trademarksof Microsoft Corporation. Apple and Macintosh are registered trademarks of Apple Computer, Inc. Netscapeand Netscape Communicator are registered trademarks of Netscape Communications Corporation. Adobe andAdobe Acrobat Reader are registered trademarks of Adobe Systems Incorporated.

All rights reserved. No part of this work covered by the copyrights hereon may be reproduced or copied in any form or

by any meansgraphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, taping, or information storage and

retrieval systemswithout the written permission of the publisher.

Made in the United States of America


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G e t t i n g S t a r t e d

Welcome!Thank you for purchasingMerriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, Eleventh Editionon CD-ROM. Its unique combination of authoritative content and powerful search capabilities deliversdynamic research solutions for all your language reference needs.

Installation instructionsInstallingMerriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, Eleventh Editionon your Windows orMacintosh computer is easy. You use any of the installation procedures you usually use, or youcan follow the installation instructions given below.

Macintosh

1. Start your computer as normal.

2. Insert the CD-ROM into the

appropriate drive.3. Double-click on the CD-ROM icon

on the desktop.

4. Double-click on the file namedSETUP.

5. Follow the instructions that appearon the screen.

Windows

1. Start Windows as normal.

2. Insert the CD-ROM into the

appropriate drive. If you haveautorunenabled on your computer,installation will begin automatically.If it does not begin on its own,follow the steps below.

3. Double-click onMy Computer.

4. Double-click on the CD-ROM icon.

5. Double-click on the file namedSETUP (or SETUP.EXE).

6. Follow the instructions that appearon the screen.

Starting the programWhen you installMerriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, Eleventh Edition,an icon called

Merriam-Webster Referenceswill be created on your desktop (or in your Programs menu inWindows). To start the dictionary program, locate and double -click on this icon.

Learning to use your dictionary programMerriam-Webster provides a variety of tools to help you learn to useMerriam-Webster'sCollegiate Dictionary, Eleventh Edition including:

This Users Guide.

On-screen Help with instructions. These appear in the status bar at the bottom of theprogram screen when you roll your cursor over key parts of the interface.

A comprehensiveHelp System built into the program. To useHelp System, click onthe Help menu and choose either the Contents and Index (Windows), HelpContents (Macintosh), or Search for help on option to locate the information youwant.

TheREADME.TXT file, which explains any last minute updates or corrections madeto the product just prior to publication.


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Technical supportIf you have questions about installing or using this product on your computer, call our technicalsupport staff at 1-800-696-0514, Monday through Friday, between 6:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m.,Pacific Time. If you prefer, you can e-mail our technical support staff at [email protected].

TIPRoll your cursor over the button or feature you need help with, then check the status bar at the bottomof the screen for a brief explanation of the feature. The information you find there can also serve as a sourceof keywords to use in searching the Help System for more details.


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A Q u i c k To u r

IntroductionThis section provides an overview of the dictionary content available in the program and the main

screens and features. More detailed explanations of the programs features can be found in thelater chapters.

Types of information in dictionary entriesDictionary entries are specially designed to pack a lot of information into a very limited space.The sample entry below introduces the key elements of a dictionary entry. Detailed informationabout the structure of the entries and of the individual components can be found within thesection called Explanatory Notes in this User's Guide.

Figure 1 Annotated Sample Dictionary Entry

TIPOpen the dictionary as you read through this section so you can try the example searches and activitiesincluded throughout the tour.

FUNCTION LABELIndicates the part of

speech or other function.

ERBAL ILLUSTRATION

Demonstrates how a word isused in context.

DATEIndicates the date of first

documented use of the entryword.

ENTRY TEXTLists meanings of the entry

word in chronological order.

ENTRY WORDAlso known as the MainEntry. It will include dotsshowing hyphenation points

when applicable.

USAGE NOTEGives supplementaryinformation about idioms,syntax, semanticrelationships, and status.

ETYMOLOGYDetails the origins of the

entry word.


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Program overviewAll of the features you need to use this program efficiently and effectively can be foundin the Main Window of the program. (See Figure 2 below)

The programs features are organized to help you find information quickly and easily. From theMain Window you can:

Search for words

View the results of searches Use the results of searches

Merriam-Websters Unabridged DictionaryMerriam-Websters Dictionary

Figure 2 Main Window

MENU BARNAVIGATION AREA

SEARCH TABS

SEARCH TYPEMENU

RESULTS/LOOKUPLIST

STATUS BAR

GO ONLINE

ENTRY DISPLAY

ILLUSTRATION

SEARCHINPUT BOX


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Each component of the Main Window enables you to accomplish certain tasks with this program.The list below summarizes the most important elements of the Main Window and explains brieflywhat you can do with each one.

Menu bar

The Menubar appears at the top of the screen and lets you access all of the program featuresusing either your mouse or keyboard.

Navigation areaThis part of the screen includes the Back and Forward buttons and the Select a Referencedrop-down menu. The latter allows you to choose which Merriam-Webster electronicreference you will search, provided you have more than one installed.

Search tabsThe three Search tabs below the Navigation area let you choose between the BasicSearches, Advanced Searches, and Browse search screens.

Search Input areaThis area includes the Search Type drop-down menu, which you can use to choose the typeof search you want to perform. It has a Search Inputbox where you type the word or phraseyou want to look up. It also has Search, Clear, and Spelling Helpbuttons to use whensearching.

Results/Lookup List areaWhen you are typing a word in the Search Inputbox, theResults/Lookup List area shows alist of words that contain the letters you have already typed. After you have clicked on theSearchbutton, this area shows the results of the search.See also Using the Results/LookupList Area.

Entry Display area

This area on the right side of the screen shows the dictionary entry for the word or phrasehighlighted in the Results/Lookup List.

Status barThis area at the bottom of the screen shows how many words have been found by yoursearch, and provides brief help messages as you move your cursor over the screen.

IllustrationsIllustrations appear in their own window. See also Illustrations and Tables.

Go OnlineThe Go Online menu and Go Online button let you access web-based resources. See also

Going Online.


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Menu commandsThe following table describes the menu options that are available in this program.

This menu allows These actions

FILE

New Window Opens a new copy of the Main Window.

Print Enables printing of entries, lists, illustrations, or tables.

Print Setup Opens controls to change printer settings.

Close Closes any currently open window or dialog box, but does not shutdown the program.

Exit/Quit Shuts down the program.

EDIT

Copy Copies highlighted text to the clipboard.

Copy Word Copies the currently displayed entry word, without hyphenationpoints, to the clipboard.

Paste Inserts text from the clipboard to the Search Input area.Select All Highlights all text in the Entry Display area.

Preferences Opens controls to change font size and color, search options, andreference options.

Clear Clears the Search Input, Results/Lookup List, and Entry Display

areas.

VIEW

Previous Entry Displays the last entry viewed (i.e., moves backward through the

History List).

Next Entry Returns to an entry after the Previous Entry option has been used(i.e., moves forward through the History List).

Previous List Displays the most recently viewed Results List (i.e., movesbackward through past Results Lists).

Next List Returns to a Results List after the Previous List option has beenused (i.e., moves forward through past Results List).

History Opens a dialog box showing previously viewed words.

Basic Searches Changes to the Basic Searches tab.

Advanced Searches Changes to the Advanced Searches tab.

Browse Changes to the Browse tab.

BOOKMARKS

Add Bookmark Adds an entry to the Bookmark menu.

Organize Bookmarks Opens controls to sort and rearrange bookmarks.

GO ONLINE

Various links Each link opens your Web browser and then a Web page where youcan register your software, access online resources, subscribe toadditional references, and learn more about Merriam-Webster and

Encyclopdia Britannica products.


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WINDOWS

Next Window Cycles through all open windows.

HELP

Contents and Index

(Mac=Help Contents)

Displays Help Contents.

Search for Help on Allows you to search for help on specific topics or keywords.

About this Product Provides copyright and version information for the dictionaryprogram.

Types of searchesMerriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, Eleventh Edition offers 15 different types of searchesin the Search Type menu. The table below provides a list of these search types and gives a briefdescription of their intended uses. You will find more detailed information about how to performeach type of search in Performing Basic Searches.

Search fields and their functions

Choose this search To find

Entry word is The definition of a word or phrase.

Defining text contains Entries whose definition includes a specific word.

Rhymes with Words that rhyme with a given word.

Forms a crossword of Words where you know some letters but not others.

Is a cryptogram of Words that solve a cryptogram puzzle or code pattern.

Is a jumble of Words that can be made by shuffling a given group of letters.

Homophones are Words that sound alike but are spelled differently.

Etymology includes Words that derive from a particular language or word root.

Date is Words first documented in a given year, decade, or century.

Verbal illustration

contains

Examples of a word used in context.

Author quoted is Quotes from a specific author or publication.

Function label is Words that have a certain function (e.g., trademark) or part-of-speechlabel.

Synonymy paragraph

contains

Paragraphs describing differences among synonyms.

Usage paragraph

contains

Words used in paragraphs explaining conventions related to or

restrictions on applications of words of confused or disputed usage.

Usage note contains Words that are used in a certain way (e.g., slang), that are foundprimarily in the English of a particular region (e.g., Scotland), or that

have special uses in a particular field (e.g., law).


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Looking up a wordIt is very easy to look up a word using this program. Just follow these instructions:

1. Type the word or phrase you want to look up in the Search Inputbox.

2. Click on the Searchbutton (or press ENTER/RETURN).

These instructions let you look up a boldface word in the dictionary much as you would in aprinted dictionary. See also Performing Basic Searches, Performing Advanced Searches, andPerforming Browse Searches in this Users Guide.

Using the Results/Lookup List areaLookup ListAs you start to type a word or phrase in the Search Inputbox, the list of words in the

Results/Lookup List area will show terms that begin with the letters you have already typed.This is called a Lookup List. If you see the word you want in the Lookup List, double-click on itto display its entry.

Results List

After you enter a word in the Search Inputbox and click the Searchbutton, a list of words willappear in the Results/Lookup List area. This list, called a Results List, shows you all words,including homographs, that have your search term in them. The entry for the first item in theResults List displays automatically in the Entry Display area. To see the entry for any otherword in the Results List, simply click on it. You can also view the results of previous searches byusing the Back and Forwardbuttons that appear directly above the Results List.

Figure 3 Back and Forward buttons

Going onlineIf you have an Internet connection and a Web browser, the Go Online menu and button provideeasy access to a wealth of additional language-related resources. To access Merriam-Webstersonline resources make sure you have an open Internet connection, go to the Go Online menu, andclick on the name of the feature you want to access. Alternately, click the Go Online button abovethe entry display area to go directly to Merriam-Webster.com.

Illustrations and TablesMerriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, Eleventh Edition includes more than 1,300illustrations and 24 tables. If an entry has an illustration, an icon shaped like an eye will appear atthe end of the dictionary entry text. If an entry has a table, a table icon will appear at the end ofthe entry.

Art icon Table icon

Figure 4 Art and table icons

BACK BUTTON FORWARD BUTTON


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To view either an illustration or a table, double-click on the icon for it. The illustration or tablewill open in its own window, which you can resize or close independently of the main programwindow. You can also print illustrations or tables by clicking on the Printbutton in the upperright corner of the window containing the illustration or table.

TIPYou can look up several words at once. Simply type all of the words into the Search Input box withcommas separating them and click on the Search button.


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P e r f o r m i n g B a s i c S e a r c h e s

Introducing the Basic Searches tabMerriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, Eleventh Edition has three search screens: BasicSearches, Advanced Searches, and Browse.The tabs for these screens help you easily locateand use the sophisticated search tools included with this program. The Basic Searches screen islikely to be the one you use most often. It appears automatically the first time you open the

program, and from it you can search the dictionary using any one of 15 powerful search options.

Figure 5 Basic Searches Screen

How to conduct a basic searchThe procedure for doing any kind of search on the Basic Searches screen is always the same, nomatter what type of search you choose from the Search Type menu. Simply follow these steps:

1. Select the Basic Searches tab by clicking on it in the Main Window, or by choosingBasic Searches from the View menu.

2. From the Search Type menu, choose the type of search you want to perform.

3. In the Search Inputbox, type the word or phrase you want to look up.


5. View the results in the Entry Display and Results/Lookup List areas.

The following sections describe how to use the 15 search types available in the Search Typemenu to access the wealth of information available in the dictionary.

RESULTS/LOOKUPLIST

STATUS BAR

SEARCH INPUT

BOX

ENTRY DISPLAY

BASIC SEARCHES TAB

SEARCH TYPE MENU

SPELLINGHELP BUTTON

SEARCH BUTTON


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Searching by entry wordThe Entr y word is search type is similar to looking up a word in a print dictionary. When usingthis search, the program finds all the entries that include the word or phrase that you enter into theSearch Inputbox. For example, if you look up the word cat, the Results List will include all ofthe homographs for cat, as well as any compound terms and phrases that include the word cat(e.g., cat and mouse, cat-onine-tails, etc.).

Searching for words in definitionsThe Defini ng text contains search type basically reverses the way you look up a word in a

print dictionary by letting you search through definitions for particular words. The defining textis the part of the dictionary entry that lists the various meanings of a word. For example, if youwere doing a project on baseball, you might want to see all the entries in the dictionary that haveto do with that sport (and which therefore include the word baseball in their definition).

TIPWhen you perform a Defining text con tains... search, the program will automatically look for inflectedforms of the search word as well as the base word. For example, if you do aDefining text contains

search for swim,the Results List will show all entries whose definitions contain swim, swam, swum,swimming, or swims.

TIPYou can use the asterisk ( * ) and question mark ( ? ) wildcard characters to help you search for wordsin definitions. See Using Wildcard Characters.

Searching for rhyming wordsThe Rhymes with search type takes advantage of the pronunciation information included indictionary entries to let you search for words that rhyme with the word you type into the SearchInputbox. This feature is especially useful for poets, lyricists, word-game players, students, and

many others who regularly use a rhyming dictionary while writing. For example, a Rhymeswithsearch for the word name will produce a Results List that includes acclaim, fame, andother words that rhyme with the word name.

Searching for homophonesThe Homophones are search type lets you search for words that sound similar to, but that areoften spelled differently from, the word you enter into the Search Inputbox. For example, asearch on the word to would yield a Results List that includes too and two.

Searching by etymologyThe Etymology includes search type allows you to find words that have particular languages or

root words in the etymology section of their entry. In a dictionary entry, the etymology providesinformation about the history and origin of a word. For an example of an etymology search, typelogiainto the Search Inputbox and click Search; all the words that derive from that Greek rootwill be displayed in the Results List.NOTE: Root words within etymologies that are not Englishwords may not have their own entries in this dictionary. As a result, you cannot see an entry for aforeign-language root word (such as the Dutch kruisen, which appears in the etymology at theentry for cruise). Brief definitions for foreign words are given in the etymologies where theyoccur. To learn more about how etymologies are structured, see Explanatory Notes.


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TIPIf the language name you want to search consists of two or more words, such as Old Englishor OldHigh German, use the Advanced Search tab to set up a multiple-term search. See Performing AdvancedSearches.

Date searchesThe Date is search type lets you search for words that were first documented in English in agiven year, decade, or century. For example, a search on the date 1988yields a Results List thatincludes 38 words whose first known and documented use occurred in 1988. You can use thequestion mark and asterisk wildcard characters to search for all of the words first documented in a

particular decade or century. For instance, a search for 198?will generate a Results Listincluding all words first documented in any year during the 1980s. A search for 19* will producea Results Listincluding all terms first documented in English between 1900 and 1999. See"Searching Using Wildcard Characters" for more details about how to use the question mark andasterisk in your searches.

Searching for word game solutionsIf you like to solve word puzzles or if you enjoy creating them, the word game searches in this

program will prove invaluable to you. You can do searches that will help you create or solvecrosswords, jumbles, or cryptograms. The following sections provide more details about how toconduct word game searches.

Crossword puzzle searchesThe Forms a crossword of search type lets you find all words with a certain number of letters.Type the letters you know and use question marks [?] for the ones you dont know. The programwill create a Results List of all the words that could solve your puzzle. For example, if you do aForms a crossword of ... search forf??ta???, the dictionary will present a list of eight-letterwords that start with the letterf and have the letters t and a in the fourth and fifth positions.

Cryptogram searchesThe I s a cryptogram of search type creates a Results List of all words which match the patternin a coded word or message that you enter into the Search Inputbox. Cryptograms are cipher

puzzles in which each letter in a word is replaced by a different letter to create a coded word ormessage (for instance,xyzzdw is a cryptogram of hidden). The puzzler must find the correctletters to crack the code and make a logical word or message out of the cipher.

Jumble searchesThe I s a jumble of search type creates a Results List showing all words that can be formedfrom a certain group of letters that you type into the Search Inputbox. Jumbles (also calledanagrams or transpositions) are popular word puzzles that require puzzlers to unscramble a

certain group of letters to make a word that matches a given clue. For example, if you perform anI s a jumble ofsearch for lmies, the Results List for your search will include the words:smile,limes, miles, andslime.

TIPUsing the Advanced Searches tab you can create a search that combines Forms a crosswo rdofwith Def ining text contains to find all words that have the correct number of letters and match theclue given in your puzzle.


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Searching for special information in entriesYou can use the following specialized search features of this program to locate words by their

part of speech, the geographical region in which they are most often used, or their special usagerestrictions. You can also find Usage Paragraphs that provide additional information about wordsof confused or disputed usage. You can even search for synonym paragraphs that describe howsynonyms are similar and how they are subtly distinct from each other.

Function label searchesThe Function label is search type delivers a Results List of all words with a particular part ofspeech or other function label. These labels are used to indicate how a word typically functions ina sentence. In most cases, the function label is a part of speech such as noun, verb, adjective,adverb, pronoun, preposition, or interjection. In some cases, the function label may indicate thata word is a trademark or certification mark. For more information on function labels, seeExplanatory Notes.

WARNING!Avoid using the Function label issearch type to look up common parts of speech, such asnoun, which will create a Results List of thousands of entries that may be difficult for your computer todisplay.

Usage label/note searchesThe Usage note contains search type allows you to look for all the words that carry usagenotes or labels indicating that they are used in a certain way (e.g., that they are slang ornonstandard), in a certain place (e.g., Scotland, chiefly North), or in a particular subject area (e.g.,baseball, law, physics). For more information on usage labels, see Explanatory Notes.

TIPIf you dont get the results you expect with theUsage note contains search type, try using theDefining text contain s search, since some usage labels or notes are included within the defining text.

Usage paragraph searchesMerriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, Eleventh Editionincludes hundreds of paragraphsdesigned to provide information and guidance for using words whose usage is the subject ofdispute or potential confusion. A Usage Paragraph typically summarizes the historical

background of the usage of the word, and also provides an overview of opinions on it. Usageparagraphs may also compare commentary on the word with actual evidence of use and offeradvice on appropriate and inadvisable applications of a term. You can use the Usage paragr aphcontainssearch to find paragraphs that can help you make more informed choices about whichword to use (or avoid) in a particular context.

Searching for verbal illustrationsThe Verbal ill ustration contains search type provides access to the thousands of example

sentences, phrases, and quotations included in the dictionary that show how words are commonlyused. You can search for verbal illustrations even when they do not appear at the entry word youare studying. For example, you might want to see examples of the word manifest used in context.That word is used in several verbal illustrations throughout the dictionary, ranging from the entryfor the word age to the one for the word thunder. For more information about verbal illustrations,see Explanatory Notes.


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Author quoted searchesThe Author quoted is search type lets you locate quotations by an author or publication whosework was used to provide a verbal illustration for an entry. Author quoted is... searches alwaysinvolve searching for the last name of the author. If you were seeking quotations by WilliamShakespeare, you would search for Shakespeare; if you were seeking quotations by Pearl S.Buck, you would search forBuck. Do not include first names, initials, or courtesy titles such as

Dr. orMs. in these searches.

TIPYou can also use the Author quo ted is search type to find quotations from periodicals ornewspapers. Just enter a key word from the publications title into the Search Input box. For example, if youwanted to find quotations from The New York Times, you could type in Times.

Searching for synonymsThe Synonym paragraph contains search type lets you use the dictionarys content to findwords that share a common meaning. A number of entries in the dictionary include these briefsynonymy paragraphs that discuss the similarities and differences between words of closely

related meaning. You can use a Synonym paragraph contai ns... search to find such paragraphsand review the best word choice for a given situation.


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How to conduct an advanced searchThe first step in performing any search in the Advanced Searches tab is to decide what kind ofinformation you want to find. For example, you need a list of nouns that rhyme with the wordname. Once you have determined what you want to find, you can build your search. To build anadvanced search, simply follow these steps:

1. Select the Advanced Searches tab.

2. Choose a search type from the Search Type menu (e.g., Defini ng text contains).

3. Type a word, phrase, or label in the Search Inputbox (e.g., baseball).

4. Click on the AND, OR, or NOTbutton as appropriate.

5. Repeat step 2 through 4 for each item in your search. Be sure to end with a word orphrase and not a logical connector.

6. When you have added all of your search terms into the Search Display area, click on the

Searchbutton (or press ENTER/RETURN.)

Logical connectors in advanced searchesLogical connectors, also known as Boolean operators, allow you to tell the dictionary to searchfor words that match two or more criteria that you specify. The table below summarizes the threelogical connectors that are used in this program.

LogicalConnector

Symbol Function

AND & Searches for words that meet two or more specified criteria (e.g.,brown AND bird)

OR | Searches for words that meet at least one of two specified criteria (e.g.,tree ORshrub)

NOT ! Excludes a specified criterion from a search (e.g., orange AND NOTcolor)

For example, you could use the AND connector to build a search in the Search Display area thatreads Defini ng text contains red AND Defini ng text containsflower to find all of theentries whose definitions include both of the words red andflower.

TIPIf you are not sure which search type to use to find particular information, check Explanatory Notes.

TIPThe NOT operator must be used immediately after the AND connector. If you try to use NOT by itself orafter the OR connector, your search will almost always generate invalid results.


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Searching using wildcard charactersYou can use wildcard characters in any of the three search tabs, but they are particularly useful inthe Advanced Searches tab. Wildcard characters can help you look up words when you arentsure how to spell them or when you want to find words that have a group of letters in common.The two wildcard characters available in this program are summarized below:

Wildcard Character Represents

? Any one letter/character

* Any number of letters/characters

For example, if you choose the Entr y word is search type and enter m?n in the Search Inputarea, the program will deliver a Results List that includes all three-letter entries that begin with mand end with n. If you entered m*n in that same search, the program will deliver a Results Listwith all words of whatever length that begin with m and end with n.

WARNING!Searches with wildcards can produce very large Results Lists that may be difficult for yourcomputer to display.

Parentheses in searchesWhen building an advanced search in the Search Display area, you can use parentheses to groupsearch criteria that belong together. For example, you might want to find all nouns that arelabeledslang or nonstandard. You might think thatExample 1below would find such words. Butthose search instructions would find all words that are labeledslang and all words that are labeled

both nonstandard and noun. To get the Results List you really want, you must use parentheses

around the OR statement to tell the computer the order in which to conduct its search, as showninExample 2below.

Example 1 Example 2

Usage note=slang (

| Usage=slang

Usage note=nonstandard |

& Usage=nonstandard

Function=noun )

&function=noun

WARNING!When entering search criteria in the Search Displayarea, do not include parentheses on thesame line as the word or phrase. Click the buttons to add them on their own line, as shown in Example 2.


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Searching for inflected formsAn inflected form of a word is a form that shows the case, number, gender, tense, or othergrammatical distinction of the word, including plurals of nouns and past-tense forms of verbs. Ifyou look up an inflected form of a word using Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary,

Eleventh Edition, the program will automatically display the main entry of the word that is thebasis for the inflected form. For example, if you choose the Entr y word issearch type and enter

the plural wordflowers in the Search Inputbox, the program will find the entry forflower andshow it in the Entry Display area. This special search capability works in most cases, but theremay be times when you will try to find a valid inflected form that the program will fail torecognize. In such cases the program will automatically display a Lookup List in theResults/Lookup List area showing entries that fall alphabetically close to the inflected form youhave typed. You will probably see the base form of your search word near the top of the list,although occasionally you may have to scroll through the Lookup List to find the word youwant. For more about inflected forms, see Explanatory Notes.


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P e r f o r m i n g B r o w s e S e a r c h e s

Introducing the Browse tabMany dictionary lovers enjoy browsing through lists of words to find an interesting one that

catches their eye. Others find browsing helpful when they are trying to locate a word where theyperhaps dont recall the exact spelling but might know it when they see it. The Browse tab ofthe dictionary is designed to enable such a scan the list search technique by letting you chooseto search using the Entry word starts with or Entr y word ends with search type.

Figure 7 Browse Tab Screen

How to conduct a Browse searchTo start using the Browse tab, follow these steps:

1. Click on the Browse tab in the Main Window, or choose Browse from the View menu.

2. Choose one of the two search types from the Search Type menu.

3. Type the letters that either begin or end the entries you want to browse.


5. Scan the list of words displayed in the Results/Lookup List area.

6. Click on a word to display its entry in the Entry Display area.

BROWSE TAB

SEARCH INPUT

BOX

SEARCH

TYPE MENU

RESULTS/LOOKUPLIST

ENTRY DISPLAY

STATUS BAR


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Searching by the beginning letters of entriesThe Entr y word starts with search type is analogous to using guide words in a print dictionaryto aid in looking up a word, and you should enter letters into the Search Inputbox as if you werefollowing that same process. First, enter the letter of the alphabetical section that would start thelist of words you seek. Then continue adding letters sequentially just as you would normally flipthrough guide words on the top of pages. Finally, once you have gotten as close as you can given

the information you know, click on the Searchbutton and begin scanning the list of entry wordsdisplayed in the Results/Lookup List area for the one you want. For example, if you choose theEntr y word starts with search type and enter the letters emb in the Search Inputbox and clickon the Searchbutton, the program will return a list of terms beginning with the abbreviation emb,including embark, embroil, and all other words that start with emb.

Searching by the endings of entriesThe Entr y word ends with search type is likely to be useful to poets and lyricists, thosecomparing the structure of words with similar spellings, or to those creating word riddles. Thisfeature allows you to search for a list of words that all end with the same set of letters. Forexample, if you choose the Entr y word ends with search type and enter the letters ede in theSearch Inputbox and click on the Searchbutton, the program will return a list of all of the

words in the dictionary that end in the letters ede, including accede, centipede, andprecede .

TIPAll searches run in the Browse tab return a maximum of 300 entries in the Results/Lookup List area.


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U s i n g D i c t i o n a r y E n t r i e s

PrintingIn this program, you can print dictionary entries, illustrations, tables, or Results Listsby simply

clicking on the Print button (which shows a printer icon or the wordPrint) located above theResults List. You can also access options to print each of these items using keyboard commands(choose Print from the File menu to find the commands). To modify your printer settings, clickon the Print Setup option in the File menu.

Highlighting and copying textYou can highlight any word, phrase, or definition within a dictionary entry by dragging yourmouse over the text. To quickly highlight all of the text in an entry, choose Select All from the

Edit menu. To eliminate highlighting, click in any white space in the Entry Display area. Tocopy highlighted text, select Copy from the Edit menu. To paste the text you have copied, use the

paste feature of the program you are pasting into (it is usually under the Edit menu). To copy justthe single word you looked up, use the Copy Word command from the Edit menu.

Pasting text into a fieldIf you wish, you can copy a word from another program and paste it into the Search Inputbox ofthe dictionary. Use the copy feature of the other program, then return to the dictionary and choose

Paste from the Edit menu. The word you copied will be pasted automatically into the SearchInputbox. To look up that word, click on the Searchbutton.

Accessing the dictionary from other programsThis program includes macros to connect the dictionary to some of the most popular word

processing programs. Installing one or more of these macros will add a dictionary button to thetoolbar or an item to the right-click menu of those programs. To use the macro after it has been

installed, follow these steps:

1. While using your word processor, place the cursor in the word you want to look up.

2. Click on the dictionary macro button or the right-click menu listing. The dictionary willopen.

3. Review the dictionary entry for your word.


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A d v a n c e d F e a t u r e s

Bookmarking entriesMerriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, Eleventh Edition lets you bookmark entries in much

the same way that you bookmark pages on the World Wide Web with a browser. Bookmarksmake it easy to return to certain words or definitions that are of particular interest to you.

Adding new bookmarksTo create a bookmark, simply open the entry you want to return to and select the Add Bookmarkcommand from the Bookmarks menu. A submenu will appear showing you all folders thatalready exist for saving the bookmark in. The choice named Main Level will add the entrydirectly to the Bookmarks menu, below the line, in the order it was added.

Organizing bookmarksTo rearrange your bookmarks once they are created, choose Organize Bookmarks from theBookmarks menu. This will open the Organize Bookmarks dialog box shown below. To create

a new folder, open the Organize Bookmarks dialog box and view the folder/bookmarks list.Position your cursor within the list where you would like the new folder to be inserted, and clickon the Create New Folderbutton. Type a name for your folder and click OK. You can also usethe Sortbutton to arrange your bookmarks alphabetically. When you do, the folders will appearat the top of the list, followed by the bookmarks. Use the Deletebutton to remove any bookmarksyou no longer need.

Figure 8 Organize Bookmarks Dialog


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Help using bookmarksFor help using the bookmark feature, click the Helpbutton in the Bookmarks dialog box.

TIPYou must have an entry showing in the Entry Display area before you can use the Add Bookmarkfeature.

TIPTo quickly move a bookmark from one folder to another, simply click on it in the Organize Bookmarksdialog box and drag it to the new folder.

Customizing your programYou can customizeMerriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, Eleventh Edition to best matchyour needs by choosing Preferences from the Edit menu. This will open the Preferences dialog

box shown below, featuring the Appearance, Reference, and Browse Search tabs.

Figure 10 Spelling Help Dialog Box

The Appearance tabUse the Appearance tab to change the text or background colors or to increase or decrease thesize of the font used in dictionary entries. To change the color of the dictionary text or the

background on which it displays, click the appropriate Changebutton on the Appearance tab,

choose the color you want, and click OK. To increase or decrease the size of the text, choose atext size from the drop-down menu on that tab. If you want to use the same colors and font sizesin the Results List, click the check box at the bottom of the tab.

The Reference tabUse the Reference tab to select which reference will open when you start the program. If youhave only one Merriam-Webster reference installed, it is chosen by default. If you have installedmore than one Merriam-Webster reference in the same directory/folder on your computer, choosethe one you want to open from the drop-down menu.


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The Searches tabUse the Searches tab in the Preferences dialog box to select which search tab (Basic Searches,Advanced Searches, or Browse) will automatically display in the Main Window when thedictionary program is opened. You can also use it to preselect a default search type (e.g., Entryword is). You can change or override these Preferences settings in the Main Window at anytime either by choosing a different option there, or by choosing Preferences from the Edit menu

again.

TIPTo return to the appearance, reference, and search choices that were used for dictionary text when youfirst installed it (i.e., the default settings), click the Restore Defaults button.

Spelling helpHow can you look up a word in the dictionary if you arent sure how to spell it?Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, Eleventh Edition includes features to help you find the correctspelling of words so you can locate their entries more easily. These features include the LookupList feature and the Spelling Helpbutton and Spelling Help dialog box.

Figure 10Spelling Help Dialog Box

Using Spelling HelpTo use the Spelling Help feature simply type a word the way it sounds into the Search Inputboxand click on the Spelling Helpbutton. This will launch the Spelling Help dialog box and create alist of suggested words. Scan through this list and double-click on the one you want (or highlightit and click OK) to see its entry. NOTE: The Spelling Help dialog box does not automaticallyclose after you use it; it remains open in case you want to check more than one word in the list.

To access it again after double -clicking on a word, choose Spelling Help from the Windowmenu.


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Explanatory Notes

Entries

MAIN ENTRIESA boldface letter or a combination of such letters, in-

cluding punctuation marks and diacritics where needed,that is set flush with the left-hand margin of each columnof type is a main entry or entry word. The main entry mayconsist of letters set solid, of letters joined by a hyphen ora slash, or of letters separated by one or more spaces:

1alone. . .adj

auetodaf. . . n

and/or. . . conj

automatic pilot n

The material in lightface type that follows each main entryon the same line and on succeeding indented lines explainsand justifies its inclusion in the dictionary.

Variation in the styling of compound words in English isfrequent and widespread. It is often completely acceptableto choose freely among open, hyphenated, and closed al-ternatives as life style, life-style, or lifestyle. However, toshow all the stylings that are found for English compounds

would require space that can be better used for other in-formation. So this dictionary limits itself to a single stylingfor a compound:

peaceemakeer

pellmell

boom box

When a compound is widely used and one styling predom-inates, that styling is shown. When a compound is uncom-mon or when the evidence indicates that two or three styl-ings are approximately equal in frequency, the stylingshown is based on the analogy of similar compounds.

ABBREVIATIONS AND SYMBOLSAbbreviations and symbols for chemical elements are

included as main entries in the vocabulary:

ca abbrcirca

Ca symbolcalcium

Abbreviations have been normalized to one form. In prac-tice, however, there is considerable variation in the use ofperiods and in capitalization as mph, m.p.h., Mph, and

MPH, and stylings other than those given in this dictio-nary are often acceptable.

For a list of abbreviations regularly used in this dictio-nary, see the section Abbreviations in This Work else-

where in the front matter. Many of these are also in gener-al use, but as a rule an abbreviation is entered either in thevocabulary or in that list, not both.

ORDER OF MAIN ENTRIESThe main entries follow one another in alphabetical or-

der letter by letter without regard to intervening spaces orhyphens: battle royal follows battlement and earth

shatteringfollows earthshaking. Those containing an Ara-bic numeral are alphabetized as if the numeral were

spelled out: 3-D comes between three-color and threedecker.Those that often begin with the abbreviation St. incommon usage have the abbreviation spelled out: Saint

Anthonys fire.

Full words come before parts of words made up of thesame letters. Solid compounds come first and are followedby hyphenated compounds and then open compounds.Lowercase entries come before entries that begin with acapital letter:

3semi. . . n

semi-. . . prefix

takeeout. . .n

takeout. . . adj

take out vt

timeoethy. . .n

Timeoethy. . .n

HOMOGRAPHS

When one main entry has exactly the same written formas another, the two are distinguished by superscript nu-merals preceding each word:

1melt. . .vb 1pine. . . n

2melt n 2pinevi

Sometimes such homographs are related: the two entriesmeltare derived from the same root. Sometimes there isno relationship: the two entries pineare unrelated beyondthe accident of spelling. The order of homographs is usual-ly historical: the one first used in English is entered first. A

homograph derived from an earlier homograph by func-tional shift, however, follows its parent immediately, withthe result that occasionally one homograph appears aheadof another that is older in usage. For example, of the threeentrieskennelthe second a verb is derived from the firsta noun. Even though the unrelated third entry kennel

was used in English many years before the second, it fol-lows the two related entries.

Abbreviations and symbols that are homographs of oth-er entries are listed last:

1bus. . .n

2busvb

3bus abbr

GUIDE WORDS

A pair of guide words is printed at the top of each page.The entries that fall alphabetically between the guide

words are found on that page.It is important to remember that alphabetical order

rather than position of an entry on the page determinesthe selection of guide words. The first guide word is the al-phabetically first entry on the page. The second guide

word is usually the alphabetically last entry on the page:

glee I globular cluster

The entry need not be a main entry. Another boldfaceworda variant, an inflected form, or a defined or unde-


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fined run-onmay be selected as a guide word. For thisreason the last printed main entry on a page is not alwaysthe last entry alphabetically:

IQ I ironness

On the page where these guide words are used, ironmon-

gery is the last printed entry, but ironness, a derivativeword run on at 2iron,is the last entry alphabetically and sohas been chosen as the second guide word.

All guide words must themselves be in alphabetical or-der from page to page throughout the dictionary thus, thealphabetically last entry on a page is not used if it followsalphabetically the first guide word on the next page:

joint I Jotun

On the page where these guide words are found, Jotunn,avariant at the entry Jotun, is the last entry alphabetically,but it is not used as the second guide word because it fol-lows alphabetically the entry Jotunheim, which is the firstguide word on the next page. To use Jotunnwould violatethe alphabetical order of guide words from page to page,and so the entry Jotunis the second guide word instead.

END-OF-LINE DIVISIONThe centered dots within entry words indicate divisionpoints at which a hyphen may be put at the end of a line ofprint or writing. Thus the noun posesiebileietymay be endedon one line with:

pos-

possi-

possibil-

possibili-

and continued on the next with:

sibility

bility

ity

ty

Centered dots are not shown after a single initial letter orbefore a single terminal letter because printers seldom cutoff a single letter:

aswirl. . .adj

mouthy. . .adj

idea. . . n

Nor are they shown at second and succeeding homographsunless these differ among themselves:

1reeform. . .vb 1mineute. . .n

2reformn 2minutevt

3reformadj 3mienute. . .adj

There are acceptable alternative end-of-line divisions

just as there are acceptable variant spellings and pronunci-ations. It is, for example, all but impossible to produce aconvincing argument that either of the divisionsausetereiety, auestereiety is better than the other. But spacecannot be taken for entries like ausetereiety or auestereiety,and auesetereiety would likely be confusing to many. Nomore than one division is, therefore, shown for an entry inthis dictionary.

Many words have two or more common pronunciationvariants, and the same end-of-line division is not alwaysappropriate for each of them. The division flaegelelar, forexample, best fits the variant fl-je-lr whereas the divi-sionflageelelarbest fits the variant fla-j-lr. In instances

like this, the division falling farther to the left is used, re-gardless of the order of the pronunciations:

flaegelelarfl-je-lr, fla-j-lr

For more information on centered dots within entrywords see the paragraph on hyphens in the Guide to Pro-

nunciation.A double hyphen at the end of a line in this dictionary

stands for a hyphen that belongs at that point in a hyphen-ated word and that is retained when the word is written asa unit on one line.

lemon thyme n 1629 : a thyme Thymus citriodorus having lemonscented leaves used as a seasoning also: its leaves

VARIANTS

When a main entry is followed by the word orand an-other spelling, the two spellings occur with equal or nearlyequal frequency and can be considered equal variants.Both are standard, and either one may be used accordingto personal inclination:

ocherorochre

If two variants joined by orare out of alphabetical order,they remain equal variants. The one printed first is, how-ever, slightly more common than the second:

polelyewogorpoleliewog

When another spelling is joined to the main entry by theword also, the spelling after also occurs appreciably lessoften and thus is considered a secondary variant:

canecelelaetion alsocaneceleation

Secondary variants belong to standard usage and may beused according to personal inclination. If there are twosecondary variants, the second is joined to the first by or.Once the word also is used to signal a secondary variant,all following variants are joined by or:

1

Shakee

speare

ean or Shakee

speare

ian also Shake

spere

ean orShakespereian

The use oforto indicate equal variants and alsoto indi-cate secondary variants applies not only to main entries,but to all boldface entry words, including inflected formsand run-on entries.

Variants of main entries whose spelling places them al-phabetically more than a column away from the main en-try are entered at their own alphabetical places as well asat the main entry:

gibeorjibe. . . vb

1jibe var of

1rhymealsorime. . . n

rhymeester alsorimeester. . .n

3rime, rimester var of,

Variants having a usage label appear only at their own al-phabetical places:

metre. . .chiefly Brit var of

agin. . .dial var of

RUN-ON ENTRIES

The defined senses of a main entry may be followed byone or more derivatives or by a homograph with a differ-ent functional label. These are run-on entries. Each is in-troduced by a lightface dash and each has a functional la-


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bel. They are not defined, however, since their meaningsare readily derivable from the meaning of the root word:

slay. . .vb . . . slayeer n

spireiteed. . . adj. . . spireiteedely adv spireiteedeness n

stacecaeto. . . adj. . . staccato adv staccato n

The defined senses of a main entry may be followed byone or more phrases containing the entry word or an in-flected form of it. These are also run-on entries. Each is in-troduced by a lightface dash but there is no functional la-bel. They are, however, defined since their meanings aremore than the sum of the meanings of their elements:

1hole. . .n . . . in the hole 1 : . . .

1live. . . vb . . . live it up : . . .

Defined phrases of this sort are run on at the entry consti-tuting the first major element in the phrase. The first ma-

jor element is ordinarily a verb or a noun, but when theseare absent another part of speech may serve instead:

1but. . .conj. . . but what : . . .

When there are variants, however, the run-on appears at

the entry constituting the first major invariable element inthe phrase:

1clock. . . n . . . kill the clockorrun out the clock : . . .

1hand. . . n . . . on all hands oron every hand : . . .

A run-on entry is an independent entry with respect tofunction and status. Labels at the main entry do not applyunless they are repeated.

Attention is called to the definition of vocabulary entryin this book. The termdictionary entryincludes all vocabu-lary entries as well as all boldface entries in the separatesections of the back matter headed Foreign Words andPhrases, Biographical Names, and Geographical

Names.

PronunciationPronunciation is indicated between a pair of reversed vir-gules following the entry word. The symbols used arelisted in the chart printed inside the back cover of this dic-tionary and on the page facing the first page of the dictio-nary proper. An abbreviated list appears at the bottom ofthe second column on each right-hand page of the vocabu-lary. Explanations of the symbols are given in the Guide toPronunciation.

SYLLABLESA hyphen is used in the pronunciation to show syllabic

division. These hyphens sometimes coincide with the cen-tered dots in the entry word that indicate end-of-line divi-sion sometimes they do not:

abe

sene

tee ab-sn-t1meteric me-trik

STRESS

A high-set mark indicates primary strongest stressor accent a low-set mark indicates secondary medi-um stress or accent:

heartebeathrt-bt

The stress mark stands at the beginning of the syllable thatreceives the stress.

Stress marks are an indication of the relative promi-nence of the syllables in a word. In running speech the pri-mary stress can vary in English words for several contextu-al and semantic reasons. Because the variation is so great,this book shows the primary stress of a word in its pronun-ciation as a single word out of context.

VARIANT PRONUNCIATIONSThe presence of variant pronunciations indicates that

not all educated speakers pronounce words the same way.A second-place variant is not to be regarded as less accept-able than the pronunciation that is given first. It may, infact, be used by as many educated speakers as the firstvariant, but the requirements of the printed page makeone precede the other:

apriecota-pr-kt, -

foreeignfr-n, fr-

A variant that is appreciably less common than the preced-ing variant is preceded by the word also:

1aleloya-li also-li

A variant preceded by sometimes is even less common,though it does occur in educated speech:

ineveieglein-v-gl sometimes-v-

Sometimes a regional label precedes a variant:

1great grt, Southern alsogret

The label dial precedes a variant that is noteworthy orcommon in a dialect or dialects of American English, butthat is not considered to be a standard pronunciation:

askask, sk dialaks

The symbol is placed before a pronunciation variantthat occurs in educated speech but that is considered bysome to be unacceptable:

nuecleearn-kl-r, ny-, -ky-lr

This symbol refers only to the immediately following vari-ant and not to subsequent variants separated from it by acomma or a semicolon.

PARENTHESES INPRONUNCIATIONS

Symbols enclosed by parentheses represent elementsthat are present in the pronunciation of some speakers butare absent from the pronunciation of other speakers, or el-ements that are present in some but absent from other ut-terances of the same speaker:

1twinekle twi-kl vb . . .twinekling-k-li

sateisefacetoery sa-ts-fak-t-r

reesponse ri-spnts

Thus, the parentheses at twinkling mean that there aresome who pronounce the between k and l and oth-ers who do not pronounce it.

PARTIAL AND ABSENTPRONUNCIATIONS

When a main entry has less than a full pronunciation,the missing part is to be supplied from a pronunciation ina preceding entry or within the same pair of reversed vir-gules:

chamepieoneship-ship


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Maedeiera m-dir-, -der-

The pronunciation of the first three syllables of champion-shipis found at the main entry champion:

1chamepieon cham-p-n

The hyphens before and after der in the pronunciationofMadeiraindicate that both the first and the last parts ofthe pronunciation are to be taken from the immediatelypreceding pronunciation.

Partial pronunciations are usually shown when two ormore variants have a part in common. When a variation ofstress is involved, a partial pronunciation may be termi-nated at the stress mark which stands at the beginning of asyllable not shown:

dieversed-vrs, d-, d-

anechoevy an-ch-v, an-

In general, no pronunciation is indicated for open com-pounds consisting of two or more English words that haveown-place entry:

witch doctor n

A pronunciation is shown, however, for any element of anopen compound that does not have entry at its own alpha-betical place:

diephosephoeglyecereic acid d-fs-f-gli-ser-ik-

sieve of Ereaetosetheenes-er--ts-th-nz

Only the first entry in a sequence of numbered homo-graphs is given a pronunciation if their pronunciations arethe same:

1reeward ri-wrd

2reward

Pronunciations are shown for obsolete words only if theyoccur in Shakespeare:

cloisetresskli-strs n . . .obs

The pronunciation of unpronounced derivatives andcompounds run on at a main entry is a combination of thepronunciation at the main entry and the pronunciation ofthe suffix or final element as given at its alphabetical placein the vocabulary:

ovaleness n

shot in the dark

Thus, the pronunciation ofovalnessis the sum of the pro-nunciations ofovaland -nessthat ofshot in the dark, thesum of the pronunciation of the four elements that makeup the phrase.

The notation sic is used at a few pronunciation respell-ings which are correct but are at variance with the spellingof the word.

Kie

rie

batikir--bassic

Functional Labels

An italic label indicating a part of speech or some otherfunctional classification follows the pronunciation or, ifno pronunciation is given, the main entry. The main tradi-tional parts of speech are indicated as follows:

1bold. . . adj 1but. . .conj

handeiely. . .adv oops. . . interj

boeleero. . . someeone. . .pron

2underprep 1shrink. . .vb

If a verb is both transitive and intransitive, the labels vtand vi introduce the subdivisions:

flateten. . . vb . . .vt. . . vi

A boldface swung dash is used to stand for the main en-try as flatten and separate the subdivisions of the verb. Ifthere is no subdivision, vtor vi takes the place ofvb:

2fleecevt

apeperetain. . . vi

Labeling a verb as transitive, however, does not precludeoccasional intransitive use as in absolute constructions.

Other italicized labels used to indicate functional classi-fications that are not traditional parts of speech are:

geogabbr -itis n suffix

poly- comb form -izevb suffix

-logyn comb form Lyecra. . . trademark

-iferousadj comb form -ndsymbol

super- prefix 1may. . .verbal auxiliary

Gramemy. . . service mark gidedyeap. . .vb imper

1-ic adj suffix meethinks. . .vb impersonal

2-wardor-wardsadv suffix NC17. . . certification mark

Two functional labels are sometimes combined:

zilch. . . adj or n

afloat. . .adj or adv

Functional labels are not shown for main entries thatare noun phrases having a preposition in the middle:

ball of fire ca. 1900 : a person of unusual energy . . .

Functional labels are also not shown for phrases that aredefined run-on entries.

Inflected Forms

In comparison with some other languages, English doesnot have many inflected forms. Of those which it has, sev-eral are inflected forms of words belonging to small,closed groups as the personal pronouns or the demonstra-tives. These forms can readily be found at their own al-phabetical places with a full entry as whom,the objectivecase form ofwho or with a cross-reference in small capitalletters to another entry as those,the plural form ofthat.

Most other inflected forms, however, are covered ex-plicitly or by implication at the main entry for the baseform. These are the plurals of nouns, the principal parts ofverbs the past tense, the past participle when it differsfrom the past tense, and the present participle, and the

comparative and superlative forms of adjectives and ad-verbs. In general, it may be said that when these inflectedforms are created in a manner considered regular in En-glish as by adding -s or -es to nouns, -edand -ingto verbs,and -er and -est to adjectives and adverbs and when itseems that there is nothing about the formation likely togive the dictionary user doubts, the inflected form is notshown in order to save space for information more likelyto be sought. Inflected forms are also not shown at unde-fined run-ons or at some entries bearing a limiting label:

gouremand. . . n . . . gouremanedize. . .vi

1femeienine. . . adj. . . femeienineeness . . .n


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2laken . . . laky. . .adj

2cote. . .vt. . .obs : to pass by

crouse . . .adj. . .chiefly Scot: ,

On the other hand, if the inflected form is created in an ir-regular way or if the dictionary user is likely to have

doubts about it even though it is formed regularly, theinflected form is shown in boldface, either in full or cutback to a convenient and easily recognizable point. Fulldetails about the kinds of entries at which inflected formsare shown and the kinds at which they are not shown aregiven in the three following sections.

NOUNSThe plurals of nouns are shown in this dictionary when

suffixation brings about a change of final -y to -i-, whenthe noun ends in a consonant plus -o, when the noun endsin -oo or -ey, when the noun has an irregular plural or azero plural or a foreign plural, when the noun is a com-pound that pluralizes any element but the last, when a fi-nal consonant is doubled, when the noun has variant plu-rals, and when it is believed that the dictionary user mighthave reasonable doubts about the spelling of the plural or

when the plural is spelled in a way contrary to expecta-tions:

2spyn, plspies

sielo. . . n, plsilos

2shampoon, plshampoos

galeley. . .n, plgalleys

1mouse. . .n, plmice

moose. . . n, plmoose

crieteerieon. . . n, pl-ria

soninlaw. . .n, plsonsinlaw

1quiz. . .n, plquizezes

1fish. . . n, plfish orfishees

coregi. . .n, plcorgis

3

dryn, pldrys

Cutback inflected forms are used when the noun has threeor more syllables:

ameeniety. . .n, pl-ties

The plurals of nouns are usually not shown when the baseword is unchanged by suffixation, when the noun is acompound whose second element is readily recognizableas a regular free form entered at its own place, or when thenoun is unlikely to occur in the plural:

1night. . .n

2crunchn

foreefoot. . .n

moenogeaemy. . .n

Nouns that are plural in form and that regularly occur inplural construction are labeled n pl:

muncheies. . .n pl

Nouns that are plural in form but that are not always con-strued as plurals are appropriately labeled:

roeboteics. . .n pl but sing in constr

two bitsn pl but sing or pl in constr

A noun that is singular in construction takes a singularverb when it is used as a subject a noun that is plural in

construction takes a plural verb when it is used as a sub-ject.

VERBSThe principal parts of verbs are shown in this dictionary

when suffixation brings about a doubling of a final conso-

nant or an elision of a final-e or a change of final-y to -i-,when final -c changes to -ck in suffixation, when the verbends in-ey,when the inflection is irregular, when there arevariant inflected forms, and when it is believed that thedictionary user might have reasonable doubts about thespelling of an inflected form or when the inflected form isspelled in a way contrary to expectations:

2snag vtsnagged; snageging

1move . . .vb moved; moveing

1cry. . .vb cried; cryeing

2frolic vi froleicked; froleickeing

1surevey. . . vb sureveyed; sureveyeing

1drive. . .vb drove. . . driveen. . . driveing

2busvb bused alsobussed; buseing alsobusesing

2

visavtvie

saed. . . vie

sae

ing2chagrinvtchaegrined. . . chaegrineing

The principal parts of a regularly inflected verb are shownwhen it is desirable to indicate the pronunciation of one ofthe inflected forms:

learn. . .vb learnedlrnd, lrnt learneing

ripeen. . .vb ripeened; ripeeneingr-p-ni, rp-ni

Cutback inflected forms are often used when the verb hasthree or more syllables, when it is a disyllable that ends in-l and has variant spellings, and when it is a compound

whose second element is readily recognized as an irregularverb:

elimeienate. . .vb -nateed; -nateing

3quarrelvi -reled or-relled; -releingor-releling

1reetake. . . vt-took. . . -takeen. . . -takeing

The principal parts of verbs are usually not shown whenthe base word is unchanged by suffixation or when theverb is a compound whose second element is readily rec-ognizable as a regular free form entered at its own place:

1jump. . .vb

preejudge. . .vt

Another inflected form of English verbs is the third per-son singular of the present tense, which is regularlyformed by the addition of-s or -es to the base form of theverb. This inflected form is not shown except at a handfulof entries as have and do for which it is in some wayanomalous.

ADJECTIVES ADVERBSThe comparative and superlative forms of adjectives

and adverbs are shown in this dictionary when suffixationbrings about a doubling of a final consonant or an elisionof a final -e or a change of final -y to -i-, when the wordends in -ey, when the inflection is irregular, and whenthere are variant inflected forms:

1red. . . adjrededer; rededest

1tame. . .adjtameer; tameest

1kindely. . . adjkindelieer; -est

1earely. . . adv earelieer; -est


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diceey. . . adjdiceieer; -est

1good. . .adjbeteter. . . best

1bad. . .adjworse. . . worst

1far. . .adv farether. . . orfurether. . . farethestorfurethest

The superlative forms of adjectives and adverbs of two or

more syllables are usually cut back:3fancyadjfanecieer; -est

1earely. . .adv earelieer; -est

The comparative and superlative forms of regularly in-flected adjectives and adverbs are shown when it is desir-able to indicate the pronunciation of the inflected forms:

1young. . .adjyounegery-gr younegesty-gst

The inclusion of inflected forms in -erand -estat adjectiveand adverb entries means nothing more about the use of

moreand mostwith these adjectives and adverbs than thattheir comparative and superlative degrees may be ex-pressed in either way lazieror more lazy laziestor mostlazy.

At a few adjective entries only the superlative form isshown:

3mereadj, superlativemereest

The absence of the comparative form indicates that thereis no evidence of its use.

The comparative and superlative forms of adjectivesand adverbs are not shown when the base word is un-changed by suffixation or when the word is a compound

whose second element is readily recognizable as a regularfree form entered at its own place:

1near. . . adv

unewary. . .adj

The comparative and superlative forms of adverbs are notshown when they are identical with the inflected forms ofa preceding adjective homograph:

1hot. . .adjhoteter; hotetest

2hot adv

Capitalization

Most entries in this dictionary begin with a lowercase let-ter. A few of these have an italicized labeloften cap,whichindicates that the word is as likely to be capitalized as not,that it is as acceptable with an uppercase initial as it is withone in lowercase. Some entries begin with an uppercaseletter, which indicates that the word is usually capitalized.The absence of an initial capital or of an often caplabel in-dicates that the word is not ordinarily capitalized:

lunkehead. . . n

gareganetuan. . .adj, often cap

Moehawk. . .n

The capitalization of entries that are open or hyphenat-ed compounds is similarly indicated by the form of the en-try or by an italicized label:

obstacle course n

neoExepresesioneism. . .n, often cap N

offoffBroadwayn, often cap both Os

unAmereiecan. . . adj

Dutch oven n

Old Glory n

A word that is capitalized in some senses and lowercasein others shows variations from the form of the main entryby the use of italicized labels at the appropriate senses:

reenaisesance. . . n . . .1 cap . . .2 often cap

Sheteland. . . n . . .2 often not cap

Trine

ie

ty. . .n . . .2 not cap

Attributive Nouns

The italicized label often attribplaced after the functionallabeln indicates that the noun is often used as an adjectiveequivalent in attributive position before another noun:

1botetle. . .n, often attrib

busieness. . . n, often attrib

Examples of the attributive use of these nouns are bottleopenerand business ethics.

While any noun may occasionally be used attributively,the labeloften attribis limited to those having broad attrib-utive use. This label is not used when an adjective homo-graph as iron or paper is entered. And it is not used atopen compounds ashealth food that may be used attribu-tively with an inserted hyphen as in health-food store.

Etymology

The matter in boldface square brackets preceding the def-inition is the etymology. Meanings given in roman type

within these brackets are not definitions of the entry, butare meanings of the Middle English, Old English, or non-English words within the brackets.

The etymology traces a vocabulary entry as far back aspossible in English as to Old English, tells from what lan-guage and in what form it came into English, and exceptin the case of such words outside the general vocabularyof English as bascule and zloty traces the pre-Englishsource as far back as possible if the source is an Indo

European language. These etyma are printed in italics.

OLD, MIDDLE, AND MODERNENGLISH

The etymology usually gives the Middle English and theOld English forms of words in the following style:

1nap. . . vi . . .[MEnappen,fr. OE hnappian. . .]

1old. . .adj[ME, fr. OE eald. . .]

An etymology in which a word is traced back to MiddleEnglish but not to Old English indicates that the word isfound in Middle English but not in those texts that havesurvived from the Old English period:

1slab. . .n [ME slabbe]

1nag. . .n . . .[MEnaggeakin to Dneggesmall horse]

An etymology in which a word is traced back directly toOld English with no intervening mention of Middle En-glish indicates that the word has not survived continuouslyfrom Old English times to the present. Rather, it died outafter the Old English period and has been revived in mod-ern times:

geemot. . . n [OE gemt. . .]

thegn. . . n [OE . . . ]

An etymology is not usually given for a word created inEnglish by the combination of existing constituents or by


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functional shift. This indicates that the identity of the con-stituents is expected to be self-evident to the user.

bookeshelf. . . n . . .: an open shelf for holding books

1fireeproof. . . adj. . . : proof against or resistant to fire

offputeting. . .adj. . .: that puts one off : , -

penal coden . . .: a code of laws concerning crimes and offenses andtheir punishment

3stalkn . . .1 :the act of stalking

In the case of a family of words obviously related to acommon English word but differing from it by containingvarious easily recognizable suffixes, an etymology is usual-ly given only at the base word, even though some of thederivatives may have been formed in a language otherthan English:

1equal. . .adj ME, fr. L aequalis, fr. aequus level, equal . . . 1 a 1:of the same measure, quantity, amount, or number as another

equaleiety. . .n . . .1 :the quality or state of being equal

equaleize. . . vt. . .1 :to make equal

While equalize was formed in Modern English, equality

was actually borrowed into Middle English via AngloFrench from Latin aequalitas.

Incorporating material from major scholarly referenceworks completed in recent years, the etymologies of lateOld and Middle English words borrowed from French nowapply the label Anglo-French abbreviated AF to allmedieval French words known to have been used inFrench documents written in Britain before about 1400.This treatment acknowledges that literate English speak-ers then were typically bilingual or trilingual readers and

writers who cultivated distinctive varieties of Latin andFrench as well as of English, and that words moved easilyfrom one to another of these three languages. The labelAnglo-French should not be taken to mean that the ety-mon is attested exclusively in Anglo-French, for in thegreat majority of cases the word has a cognate form in thecontinental northern French of Picardy and Normandy orthe French of Paris and its surroundings. Because AngloFrench is one dialect of medieval French, it falls within thedomain of wider labels Old French and MiddleFrench, which cover all dialects of French in their respec-tive time frames. A similar caution applies to derivative

words:

1joureney. . .n . . . ME, fr. AF jurneeday, days journey, fr.jurday, fr.LL diurnum. . .

This etymology does not mean that the derivation of ju-rneefromjurtook place only in Anglo-French. Forms cor-responding to Anglo-French jurnee exist in other dialectsof Old and Middle French, as well as in Old Occitan, andthe word survives in Modern French as journe,day.

LANGUAGES OTHER THANENGLISH

The etymology gives the language from which words

borrowed into English have come. It also gives the form ora transliteration of the word in that language if the formdiffers from that in English:

1mareble. . .n ME, fr. AF marbre,fr. L marmor,fr. Gk marmaros

howeitezer. . .n D houwitser,ultim. fr. Czech houfniceballista

souk. . .n Ar sTqmarket

In a few cases the expression ultim. fr. replaces themore usual fr. This expression indicates that one ormore intermediate steps have been omitted in tracing thederivation of the form preceding the expression from theform following it:

trieloebite. . .n [ultim. fr. Gk trilobosthree-lobed, fr. tri-+ loboslobe]

When a language name that is not itself an entry in thedictionary is used in an etymology, a short parentheticaldefinition will immediately follow the name:

kookeaeburera. . . n [Wiradhuri Australian aborigina l language of cen-tral New South Wales gugubarra

]

However, subfamily, language, or dialect names modifiedby qualifiers that simply add geographical orientationasInterior Salish, MF Picard dial., or SouthernPaiutewill not be further defined as long as both thequalifier and the word being qualified are both entries inthe dictionary.

Words cited from certain American Indian languagesand from some other languages that are infrequentlyprinted have been rendered with the phonetic symbolsused by scholars of those languages. These symbols in-clude the following: a raised dot to the right of a vowel let-ter to mark vowel length a hook below a vowel letter tomark nasality an apostrophe over a consonant letter tomark glottal release a superscript w to the right of a con-sonant letter to mark labialization the symbol Z to render the symbol q to render a high central vowel the Greekletters, , and to render voiced labial, dental, and velar

fricatives the symbolto render th the symbolxto ren-der the symbol p to render a glottal stop and the sym-bol crossed lambda for a voiceless lateral affricate.Examples of these symbols can be found at etymologiesfor the words Athabascan, babassu, coho, fist, Lhasa apso,

potlatch,and sego lily.

ASSUMED OR RECONSTRUCTEDFORMS

An asterisk placed before a word means that it is as-sumed to have existed or has been reconstructed by meansof comparative evidence. In some cases, the assumptionmay be due to lack of evidence:

4bore n [ME borewave, fr. ONbra]1601

The word is unattested before Modern English, though the

likelihood is strong that it was borrowed from Scandina-vian much earlier. The case of the word battlement issomewhat different:

batetleement. . .n [ME batelment,fr. AF bataillement,fr. bataillertofortify with battlements more at ]

It is highly probable that bataillement existed in AngloFrench, given that both the underlying verb bataillerandthe Middle English derivative batelmentare attested.

The asterisk is invariably used before words labeled VL,which stands for Vulgar Latin, the traditional name forthe unrecorded spoken Latin of both the uneducated andeducated, especially in the final centuries of the RomanEmpire. Vulgar Latin forms can be reconstructed on thebasis of their later outcome in the Romance languages andof their relationship with known Latin words:

1canevas. . .n ME canevas,fr. AFcanevas, chanevaz,fr. VL cannaba-

ceushempen, fr. L cannabishemp . . .]

WORDS OF UNKNOWN ORIGIN

When the source of a word appearing as a main entry isunknown, the expression origin unknown is usuallyused. Only in exceptional circumstances as with someethnic names does the absence of an etymology mean thatit has not been possible to furnish an informative etymolo-gy. More often, it means that no etymology is believed tobe necessary. This is the case, for instance, with most ofthe entries identified as variants and with many deriva-tives.


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ETYMOLOGIES OF TECHNICALWORDS

Much of the technical vocabulary of the sciences andother specialized studies consists of words or word ele-ments that are current in two or more languages, with onlysuch slight modifications as are necessary to adapt them tothe structure of the individual language in each case.Many words and word elements of this kind have becomesufficiently a part of the general vocabulary of English asto require entry in an abridged dictionary. Because of thevast extent of the relevant published material in many lan-guages and in many scientific and other specialized fields,it is impracticable to ascertain the language of origin of ev-ery such term. Yet it would not be accurate to formulate astatement about the origin of any such term in a way thatcould be interpreted as implying that it was coined in En-glish. Accordingly, whenever a term that is entered in thisdictionary belongs recognizably to this class of interna-tionally current terms and whenever no positive evidenceis at hand to show that it was coined in English, the ety-mology recognizes its international status and the possibil-ity that it originated elsewhere than in English by use ofthe label ISV for International Scientific Vocabulary:

megae

watt . . . n [ISV]phyeloegeeneteic. . .adj[ISV, fr. NL phylogenesis. . .]

1-ol n suffix[ISV, fr. alcohol]

COMPRESSION OF INFORMATION

An etymology giving the name of a language includingME or OE and not giving the foreign or Middle Englishor Old English form indicates that this form is the same asthat of the entry word:

kaepok. . .n [Malay]

1poegrom . . . n [Yiddish, fr. Russ . . . ]

1dumb. . . adj[ME, fr. OE . . . ]

An etymology giving the name of a language includingME or OE and the form in that language but not giving

the foreign or Middle English or Old English meaning in-dicates that this meaning is the same as that expressed inthe first definition in the entry:

1weaery. . . adj. . .[ME wery, fr. OE wrig. . .] . . .1 : exhausted instrength . . .

When a word from a foreign language or Middle En-glish or Old English is a key element in the etymologies ofseveral related entries that are found close together, themeaning of the word is usually given at only one of the en-tries:

veeloece. . . adv or adj[It, fr. Lveloc-, velox]

veeloceiepede. . . n [F vlocipde,fr. L veloc-, velox + ped-, pes foot more at ]

veeloceiety. . .n . . .[MF velocit, fr. L velocitat-, velocitas, fr. veloc-,veloxquick prob. akin to L vegreto enliven more at ]

When an etymology includes the expression by alter.and the altered form is not cited, the form is the term giv-en in small capital letters as the definition:

ole. . . adj[by alter.]. . .:

When the origin of a word is traced to the name of a per-son or place not further identified, additional informationmay be found in the Biographical Names or Geographical

Names section in the back matter:

faread. . .n [MichaelFaraday]

jodhepur. . . n [Jodhpur,India]

RELATED WORDS

When a word of Indo-European origin has been tracedback to the earliest language in which it is attested, wordsdescended from the same Indo-European base in otherlanguages especially Old High German, Latin, Greek, and

Sanskrit are usually given:naevel. . .n [ME, fr. OE nafela akin to OHG nabalonavel, L umbili-

cus,Gk omphalos]

1wind. . .n . . .[ME, fr. OE akin to OHG wintwind, L ventus,Gkanaito blow, Skt vtiit blows]

Sometimes, however, to avoid space-consuming repetition,the expression more at directs the user to another entry

where the cognates are given:

hoely. . .adj. . .[ME, fr. OE hlig akin to OE hl whole more at]

Besides the use of akin to to denote relatedness, someetymologies make special use of akin to as part of alonger formula of . . . origin akin to. . . . This formulaindicates that a word was borrowed from some languagebelonging to a group of languages whose name is insertedin the blank before the word origin,that it is impossible tosay that the word in question is a borrowing of a particularattested word in a particular language of the source group,and that the form cited in the blank after the expressionakin tois related to the word in question as attested withinthe source group:

baenana. . . n . . .[Sp or Pg Sp, fr. Pg, of African origin akin to Wolofbanaanabanana]

2briar n [ . . . F bruyre heath, fr. MF bruiere, fr. VL brucaria,fr. LLbrucusheather, of Celt origin akin to OIrfroechheather akin to Gkereikheather]

This last example shows the two contrasting uses of akinto. The word cited immediately after of Celt origin akinto is an attested Celtic word descended from the same et-ymon as the unattested Celtic source of the Latin word.The word cited after the second akin to is evidence thatthe Celtic etymon has deeper relations within Indo

European.

Dates

At most main entries a date will be found enclosed in pa-rentheses immediately preceding the boldface colon or thenumber t

Merriam Webster Collegiate Dictionary Elevent Edition Users Guide (Merriam Webster,p72)

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