Types of Dictionaries

Different types of dictionaries contain different kinds of information. However, all dictionaries contain certain general features.

An abridged dictionary is one that is shortened or condensed. It contains most of the words that you are likely to use or encounter in your reading or writing.

A specialized dictionary defines words you are likely to use in a particular profession, field, or area of interest.

An unabridged dictionary contains nearly all the words in a language.

"Words are pegs to hang ideas on."

~Henry Ward Beecher, in Proverbs from Plymouth Pulpit

A dictionary is a collection of words in one or more specific languages, often alphabetically with usage of information, definitions, etymologies, phonetics, pronunciations, translation, and other information. To say it simply, it is a book of words.

A broad distinction is made between general and specialized dictionaries. Specialized dictionaries do not contain information about words that are used in language for general purposes--words used by ordinary people in everyday situations. Lexical items that describe concepts in specific fields are usually called terms instead of word, although there is no consensus whether lexicology and terminology are two different fields of study. In theory, general dictionaries are supposed to be semasiological, mapping words to definitions, while specialized dictionaries are supposed ot be onomasiological, first identifying concepts and then, establishing the terms used to designate them. In practice, the two approaches are used for both types. There are other types of dictionaries that don't fit neatly in the above distinction, for instance, bilingual dictionaries, dictionaries of synonyms, or rhyming dictionaries. The word dictionary is usually understood to refer to a monolingual general-purpose dictionary.