The Meaning of Meaning

Purpose: [pur-puhs] noun

the reason for which something exists or is done, made, used, etc.

I just want to debunk a myth that was fed to us as children: the purpose of a dictionary is not to inform us of proper word usage. I repeat, you cannot use the dictionary to prove that you are using a word correctly.

English dictionary editors are adamant that their only job is to reflect how words are used, not to endorse that usage as correct or not. This is not France with its Academie francaise (my apologies for Blogger.com's lack of dictatorial marks and foreign letters) or Spain with its Real Academia Espanola devoted to regulating how language is used. Our editors' primary concern is that when you hear a word you do not know, you may consult the dictionary to learn its intended meaning. (For word geeks, this is known as the conflict between prescriptive and descriptive approaches.) Therefore, the minute a definition enters "common" usage - whatever that means - it will also enter your dictionary, whether it is commonly used correctly or commonly abused, disgraced, and left for dead.

Sorry, just had to share that . . .