- Published: September 11, 2022
- Updated: September 11, 2022
- University / College: University of Calgary
- Language: English
- Downloads: 46
The importance of language in human history cannot be overemphasized. Many scholars have come up to explain the development of language which has been used since time immemorial by human beings. The idea on how the meaning of a particular word is defined in the dictionary and its use in the really life situation has not only generated debate among scholars but has also attracted attention from other groups like political class. The main purpose of language is to pass an intended message to a certain group of targeted audience. Different people across the globe have ways and means of interpreting a given word. This is due the originality of that particular word and the meaning associated with it rather than the way it’s defined in the dictionary. A particular word in America may have a completely different meaning in Europe. The writing of the dictionary in many cases is biased in favour of the place of origin of the people in the panel writing it and their own understanding of the given word. This leaves out some of the meaning of the word which may be in use in a particular geographical region which is not represented in that particular panel. Another issue is that of pronunciation of a given word, to many people English is a borrowed language hence they find some difficulty in pronouncing a certain word which may distort the exact meaning of that particular word. For instance English claim originality of English language and the believe every word they are speaking is correct even though it may have a different meaning in the dictionary. Some words are also used in a given context to mean a totally different meaning from their actual meaning; this is particularly common in political rallies and in courts. The augment advanced by Hayawaka that dictionary doesn’t give the meaning of words but it’s a recording of all known facts about that word is therefore justified. Using this line of augment gives one flexibility of using word to communicate without necessarily being tied to their dictionary meaning. English is not a static language but rather a developing language which changes with time, therefore the recording of all meaning of a certain word is useful compared to that of giving a tied definition. it is true that words do not have true meaning to it, it is people who give the meaning to words/sound through speaking.