"Nonmorphological Derivations" and the Four Main English Learner's Dictionaries

Abstract

This article addresses the problem of "nonmorphological derivations" in English and its consequences for pedagogical lexicography, i.e. learner's dictionaries. The term "nonmorphological derivation" refers to cases such as sun — solar, moon — lunar, cat — feline, and in general to all cases where instead of, or in addition to, native derivational processes (sunny, moony, catty) English frequently uses borrowings especially from Romanic sources (Latin/French) and from Greek. The paper suggests that for such cases learner's dictionaries should give more active guidance and support, in view of the fact that many foreign learners will be from linguistic backgrounds where different, more native morphological processes are more common. An appendix lists the major examples of such derivatives.

Keywords: learner's dictionaries, pedagogical lexicography, dictionary design, foreign language teaching, morphology, morphological opacity and transparency, structure and character of the lexicon.