I found this website describing how Noah Webster was instrumental in changing the spelling of some words, but here are other changes that he had wanted:
wimmen
imagin
definit
tung
hed
thum
improovment
iz
Richard, I am beginning to see your point about not liking Webster's Dictionary; frankly, I've never liked mine, but then it may just be one of the cheaper ones (I got it at work).

It's not really popular one here - although that's only reasonable seeing as though it's a US publication.

Of course, we have Oxford and several others from which to choose.

Richard English

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Originally posted by Kalleh:
...but here are other changes that he had wanted:
_wimmen_

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It's odd how Webster's spellings, while both sensible and logical, are now only used to convey a backwardness on the part of the speaker. "Wimmen" reminded me of the old epitath supposedly used on a headstone somewhere in the Appalachias ("hillbilly" country):

Ma loved Pa.
Pa loved wimmin.
Ma caught Pa
With 2 in swimmin.

Here lies Pa.


Probably apocryphal but still...

Oh! And here I always use my "trusty, never dusty, Webster's" as my quick source for words!

So, let me ask my fellow logophiles, what hard copy dictionary should I invest in?

Of course the OED is the gold standard, though a bit unwieldy for the home. I use my library's copy when necessary. However, I adore my husband's leather-bound 3rd Edition American Heritage Dictionary. The usage notes are usually excellent. I have never liked my Webster's Dictionary; it doesn't have the breadth or depth that his AHD has. Now--perhaps our fellow Brits prefer the Oxford Dictionary? I am curious--which one?

[This message was edited by Kalleh on Sun Jan 12th, 2003 at 13:19.]

At home I have the Concise, as it is small enough to fit easily on a shelf and comprehensive enough to contain most of the lexicographical information I am likely to need. Obviously, though, its definitions are fairly short - concise would be the most appropriate word for them, I suggest.

However, we have a local library where I can, if I wish, consult the full version.

Richard English

Morgan, did you ever get your hard copy dictionary?

Somewhat belatedly, I strongly reccomend The American Heritage Dictionary largely for the "usage panel" notes which are both extremely useful and entirely readable on their own, especially if you are the word lover I assume you to be. And "Mrs. Byrne's Dictionary" is essential as well.

There's always the OED, of course, if the AHD is unavailable. I understand they carry 197 definitions for "set" and 213 for "beer."

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Morgan, did you ever get your hard copy dictionary?

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Actually, CJ, I am still looking for something worth getting. I did, however get a number of dictionaries for the holidays, including Mrs. Byrnes, Grandiloquent, The Devil's Dictionary (thanks shufitz and Kalleh), and The Highly Selective Dictionary for the Extraordinarily Literate. I also found a charming copy of The American Everyday Dictionary copyright 1947.

YES, this thread is open now! (It doesn't take much to excite me! )

The revised Merriam-Webster's 11th Collegiate Dictionary adds 10,000 words and 100,000 meanings. Here are some of the new entries:
bludge - goof off
comb-over - an attempt to cover a bald spot
dead-cat bounce - a brief, insignificant recovery after a steep decline
McJob - low-paying and dead-end work
headbanger - hard rock musician and fan
Frankenfood - genetically engineered food
dead presidents - paper money
long neck - beer served in a bottle with a long neck (I know Richard will like this one!)

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Originally posted by Morgan:
So, let me ask my fellow logophiles, what hard copy dictionary should I invest in?

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The dictionary I use most is the AHD, but why limit yourself to just one? Jack Lynch gives his opinion:

Dictionaries.

No writer can survive without a good dictionary. I'm fond of the American Heritage Dictionary, 4th ed.; it not only provides clear definitions, but refers controversial usage questions to a panel of experts who vote on whether they're acceptable. (It's also available for free on-line.) For more serious historical work, there's nothing like the Oxford English Dictionary (or OED, as it's universally known) — this twenty-volume juggernaut not only provides remarkably comprehensive definitions, but it shows how words have been used throughout their history. Anyone who writes for a living — or even a hobby — should get to know the OED.

But although dictionaries are indispensable, you have to know how to use them. Be careful not to accord to them more authority than they claim for themselves: they're works of reference put together by people, not stone tablets engraved by God. The old argument that something is "not a word" because it doesn't appear in "the" dictionary (as if there were only one dictionary), for instance, is downright silly. Any pronounceable combination of letters to which someone assigns a meaning can be called a word; the question is whether it's a good word — by which, of course, I mean an appropriate word. Many dictionaries list words like ain't or irregardless; that doesn't mean you can use them with impunity in formal writing. Pay close attention to the usage notes — "Nonstandard," "Slang," "Vulgar" — and be sure you choose the right word.

Dictionaries are also more concerned with denotations than connotations, and you're a fool if you think a dictionary entry amounts to a Get-out-of-Jail-Free card in any writing problem. Some dictionary may define gook as an Asian or queen as a gay man, but you can point to the dictionary all you like ("It's sense 3b!") without convincing anyone it's appropriate or inoffensive. Be sensitive to the associations your words carry to your audience.

Avoid, by the way, referring to "Webster's," which has no specific meaning — any dictionary can use the name. Merriam-Webster, on the other hand, is a specific company that produces well-regarded dictionaries. Besides, dictionary definitions at the beginnings of papers rarely add anything to the discussion. A favorite line from The Simpsons, where Homer wins the First Annual Montgomery Burns Award for Outstanding Achievement in the Field of Excellence: "Webster's Dictionary defines 'excellence' as 'The quality or condition of being excellent.'

Tinman