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What Dictionaries Are Good For

Linguist Geoff Nunberg says that dictionaries remove words and their meanings from any sort of context, which makes them inefficient tools for students seeking to expand their vocabularies. But dictionaries can reveal a lot about simple words, which are often the hardest to define.

03:44

Other segments from the episode on November 23, 1988

Fresh Air with Terry Gross, November 23, 1988: Interview with Edwin Newman; Review of Lou Harrison's album "Piano Concerto; Suite for Violin, Piano, and Small Orchestra"; Interview with Patrick…

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