Weekend Writing: A Eulogy to the Print Dictionary

In 1775, Samuel Johnson printed the first comprehensive dictionary, A Dictionary of the English Language. Before then, the modern-day concept of dictionaries were often small glossaries of the most common difficult/challenging words, neglecting the most basic terms.

But Johnson's dictionary was different. He aimed to cover general vocabulary and everyday usage, not just the "hard" words. This was the birth of the print dictionary as we now know it. More and more dictionaries grew from this tradition--The Century Dictionary, The Random House Dictionary, and the most famous one of all--Merriam-Webster's Dictionary. 

Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary
(photo/Kasy Long).

But when was the last time you referred to a print dictionary when you were searching for a word's proper definition? How many of you still carry around pocketbook dictionaries? I'm guessing not that many of you. Instead, we use digital dictionaries--websites like Dictionary.com and even Webster's online dictionary. We refer to these digital, electronic websites to find a definition at the click of a button, rather than flipping through pages in a print book.

Consider this blog post as a eulogy to the print dictionary, because these printed sourcebooks are no longer popular and are often neglected on the bookshelf, collecting dust.

Don't get me wrong; I'm guilty of searching for definitions through a digital dictionary, too. I'm right there with you, so I'm not judging you. I know it's easier, and faster, to digitally search for words. When you're writing a term paper, it's easy to open a new tab in your internet browser and search for a word's definition right there. I get it.

But as I have considered lately while pondering and collecting ideas for this post, we lack something very important when we neglect print dictionaries: word discovery.

Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (photo/Kasy Long).

What do I mean by this? One of the redeeming features of print dictionaries is the freedom to discover new words. Perhaps you're searching for a word's definition and you stumble upon a new word you have never heard of before. As you find words, you organically skim many other words and definitions. You might pause at a word, read its definition, and think, "Huh, I didn't know that's what that word meant." Or you might learn new words you didn't even know existed.

Word discovery.

This doesn't happen when you "Google" a word's definition and digitally search for it online. You don't skim through pages and pages of words. You're taking the easy way out of research and discovery. You're using the easy and fast solution to get what you want as quickly as possible. When you study a dictionary, you see other words and you might learn something new.

A 1955 print dictionary (photo/Kasy Long).

If a dictionary really is the universe in alphabetical order, I'm thankful for its wealth of knowledge. While print dictionaries aren't completely dead (hopefully that will never happen; same with print books), they deserve a little bit more love and respect. After all, they date back to 1775. A print dictionary has existed longer than some words have been in existence. Show them some love and respect.

Open up a print dictionary. Give it a chance. You may be surprised what you'll discover.

-KJL-