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Alternative spellings

Can you recognise these abbreviations?

Why not print out a copy to keep?

Finding a dictionary entry

Tips for finding words

Where did it come from?

How to pronounce correctly

Using a Dictionary Part 2
Contents

Part 1

WHAT'S IN YOUR DICTIONARY?
DIFFERENT KINDS OF DICTIONARY
FINDING YOUR WAY AROUND YOUR DICTIONARY
WORD MEANINGS
ILLUSTRATIVE SENTENCES
INTERNET DICTIONARIES

Part 2

CHECKING SPELLING
PARTS OF SPEECH AND PLURALS
HEAD WORDS
FINDING DIFFICULT WORDS
ORIGIN OF WORDS
GLOSSARY

Part 3

PRACTICE EXERCISES

Check any terms you don't understand in the glossary.

CHECKING YOUR SPELLING IN A DICTIONARY

Sometimes there are two or more correct spellings of a single word. They are usually in bold type and may be treated in two ways:

If the different spelling is used as frequently - Eg. ax or axe.
If the main entry spelling is preferred - Eg. medieval also mediaeval.

Different spellings of a word

Be aware of the English and American spelling. In Australia, usually English spelling is used.
For example:

colour (English)

color (American)

For more spelling tips

Refer to Spelling guide under Writing Skills on this site for more help on spelling.

PARTS OF SPEECH AND PLURALS

Dictionary entries show the part of speech.
Eg.

adj. adjective

conj. conjunction

prep. preposition

interj. interjection

adv. Adverb

pt. past tense

pro. pronoun

pp. past participle

n. noun

sing. singular

v. verb

pl. plural

An entry may show how to spell the plural form of a noun. If this is formed by adding -s or es, it is not usually shown.

If the plural is formed in a different way, the spelling is shown.
Eg.

radius n.	pl. radii
sheep n.	pl. sheep

Activity

Try this exercise on plurals of nouns.

HEAD WORDS OR GUIDE WORDS

These are usually at the top of each page.
They help you to locate a word on a dictionary page.
If there are two guide words on the page, they show the first and last words on that page.
Sometimes there is a guide word at the top of the left-hand page and one at the top of the right-hand page.
The left guide word shows the first word on the left page, and the right guide word shows the last word on the right page words.

You decide whether the word you want falls alphabetically between these two guide words.

Activity

Try this exercise to practice using guide words.

FINDING DIFFICULT WORDS

Remember, words in the dictionary occur in strict alphabetical order. The guide words at the top of the page will help you.

Find the general location of the word you are looking for. Scan the page looking for the letters you are sure of.

Can't find the word? What other possible ways could you spell it?

Maybe the word begins with a different letter which sounds the same?
Perhaps the first letter is silent?

Look in the table below to track down some of these tricky sounds.

Beginning SOUND	The word could begin with	Example
f	ph	photo
g	gh	ghost
g	gu	guest
j	g	gem
k	ch	character
kw	qu	quite
n	gn	gnash
n	kn	knee
n	pn	pneumonia
r	rh	rhyme
r	wr	write
s	c	cereal
s	ps	psychology
s	sc	science
s	ch	champagne
sj	sch	schedule
w	wh	white

WORD ORIGIN: ETYMOLOGY

This tells the history of the word.

For example, in the dictionary entry for sardine:

Sar dine (sar dine) n. pl. -dines or - dine. 1. A young pilchard preserved in oil for food. 2. any of a certain similar small fish prepared in the same way. 3. packed like sardines, very much crowded [< Latin sardina < Gk sardene, probably originally sardinian fish]

PRONUNCIATION KEY

To pronounce a word, refer to the Pronunciation Key - usually in the Introduction.

The symbols in the key tell you how letters are pronounced.

GLOSSARY

accent	special emphasis given to a syllable in pronouncing a word
antonym	a word opposite in meaning to another word, eg good and bad are antonyms
entry or entry word	word that is explained in a dictionary
etymology	the origin of a source word
guide word, head word	word at the top of a page that lets you know what part of the alphabet is on the page
homograph	word having the same spelling as another word but a different meaning and origin. Bow, a tie and bow, to bend, are homographs.
homophone	word that sounds the same (same pronunciation) as another word but has a different meaning and origin. Bow, to bend, and bough, a tree branch, are homophones.
illustrative sentence	sentence in a definition that shows how a word is used
pronunciation key	chart showing how to pronounce words
syllable	a word or part of a word pronounced as a unit
synonym	A word with the same meaning

[ON TO PRACTICE EXERCISES]

This guide developed by Jan Hayes, North Coast Institute © TAFE NSW North Coast Institute
Some artwork this page © Microsoft Corporation

Using a Dictionary Part 2 Contents

Using a Dictionary Part 2
Contents