Microsoft Word Lx14steyn doc

3.3 
Mono- and poly-accessible dictionaries 
In most general monolingual dictionaries, the central list is the only outer ac-
cess structure; therefore the macrostructure of these dictionaries coincides with 
the outer access structure. These dictionaries, classified according to their outer 
access profile, are mono-accessible dictionaries with only one defined search 
path to solve the search problem. A learner who consults the mono-accessible 
Tweetalige Aanleerderswoordeboek/Bilingual Learner's Dictionary (TAW), for the 
translation of "mountain" uses the following outer search path: he/she finds 
the letter M and the relevant article stretch, uses the guide words and scans 
through the partial article stretch for the lemma sign. 
Some dictionaries have additional wordlists and/or indexes which form 
part of the comprehensive macrostructure. In these poly-accessible dictionaries 
the user may arrive at lexicographical data by using more than one defined 
search path. Poly-accessible dictionaries only have one macrostructure but 
more than one access structure. The following example illustrates the different 
search paths available to the user: 
A learner using the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary (OALD) has two 
options in solving the search problem in reaching "mountain". Firstly, the 
learner can scan through the central list until after "mount²" and before "moun-
tainside". Another option is to use Appendix 10, Defining Vocabulary to identify 
the lemma ("mountain") and then move along the outer search path to the 
lemma in the central list. The learner can therefore first confirm whether a spe-
cific word is listed and used without having to scan through multiple article 

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The Access Structure in Learner's Dictionaries 
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stretches. This word list also gives an overview of the macrostructural scope of 
the dictionary. 
Another example of an outer text creating a poly-accessible dictionary is 
the extra wordlist provided in Collins COBUILD Learner's Dictionary (CO-
BUILD) as a text in the back matter. In this outer text, the usage frequency of 
the lemmata is indicated and as an extra access structure adds value for the 
beginner who uses/learns the most frequent words in English. The list of geo-
graphical names in the same dictionary does not, however, make the dictionary 
poly-accessible, since the names are not listed in the central list. It is an uninte-
grated text aimed at the systematizing of information to enhance knowledge 
transfer. 
The German learner's dictionary Wörterbuch Deutsch als Fremdsprache 
(WDAF) uses outer texts to rectify the unnatural alphabetical placing of, in 
Bolinger's words (1985: 69) "carrots, onions, beetroot and salsify next to one 
another". The lexicographers provide lists with words belonging to the same 
semantic fields. The learner can, for instance, find a grouping of words relating 
to physical processes. These functional texts presented in the outer text not 
only place words in their specific context, but also create a poly-accessible dic-
tionary, giving the learner accessible search path options. The poly-accessibility 
of this dictionary also functions in another direction. Many articles contain ref-
erence entries with sections in the outer text (Wortfelder) as reference addresses. 
The alphabetical ordering of the central list is complemented by the semasio-
logical ordering in the outer text (Gouws 2002: 480-481).