Multidimensional Definition Model Of Samuel Wells Williams’s A Syllabic Dictionary Of The Chinese Language

Previous studies on A Syllabic Dictionary of the Chinese Language(SDCL)involved the definition,examples,and the orthography system of this dictionary.However,only the orthography system was systematically studied.Other aspects was still relatively limited.It has been more than 200 years since the first Chinese-English dictionary was published,but there is still many research gaps in the theory of the Chinese-English dictionary compilation.Based on Systematic Definition Model,Multidimensional Definition Model and language startum,the researcher attempted to discuss the Multidimensional Definition Model of foriegn-oriented Chinese-English learner’s dictionary.This thesis took SDCL as the research object.The researcher explored the Multidimensional Definition Model in the macrostructure,mediostructure,and microstructure of it.The researcher selected the first 50 pages,the middle 50 pages and the last 50 pages of the dictionary as samples,and a total of 290 entries were collected.The research found that in the fornt matter,Williams elaborated on his user-oriented intention,the definition of official language,the improtance of dialects,the usage guide,and suggestions for learning Chinese.The back matter listed the radicals and index,which were convenient for users to inquire entries.In the mediostructure,Williams only distinguished synonyms and antonyms occasionally when explained the etymology or the composition of headwords.Williams put the related examples together.The cross-reference marks were not used systematically in SDCL.In the microstructure,Williams also valued users’ needs.Williams improved the orthographic system in Wu Fang Yuan Yin.He provided the composition and historical information of headwords when defining.He used synonyms to define and explain grammatical information.The senses were arranged according to frequency of use and logically.The examples mainly were phrases.Williams included the pronunciation,meaning and examples of headwords in many dialects into SDCL,so as to meet the needs of users in various regions.The compilation of dictionaries should be based on users’ needs.Lexicographers should choose suitable arrangement and contents with the assistance of corpora and electronic dictionaries,so that the dictionary can be used more effectively.