On Tue, May 17, 2011 at 4:04 PM, Ted MacNEIL <eamacn...@yahoo.ca> wrote:
>>Webster's" on a dictionary has no significance - it's just an attempt to 
>>cadge some legitimacy by invoking Noah Webster's name). Try AHD or OED (both 
>>of which do support the usage).

> Dictionaries do NOT support usage!
> They report it!

> Any usage is subject to consensus.

> We, when I was a kid, used to say ain't ain't in the dictionary.

> It is, now!

Good point...that's what I meant by "support": they assert that it is a common 
usage. The better ones (AHD comes to mind) include comments on non-standard 
usage-and these evolve with each revision. (There's no such note for "issue" as 
a synonym for "problem".) As a broad example, compound nouns typically evolve 
from "open" ("web server") to hyphenated ("web-server") to closed 
("webserver"). The OED, of course, has a group who do nothing but track this 
evolution and make updates for the next rev.

However, note that the OP seems convinced that dictionaries define 'correct' 
spelling and usage...

..phsiii

----------------------------------------------------------------------
For IBM-MAIN subscribe / signoff / archive access instructions,
send email to lists...@bama.ua.edu with the message: GET IBM-MAIN INFO
Search the archives at http://bama.ua.edu/archives/ibm-main.html

----------------------------------------------------------------------
For IBM-MAIN subscribe / signoff / archive access instructions,
send email to lists...@bama.ua.edu with the message: GET IBM-MAIN INFO
Search the archives at http://bama.ua.edu/archives/ibm-main.html

Reply via email to