Reference
Reference
Talking about understanding a text is impossible without a few special words. Here they are explained briefly and in everyday language, without the finer points of linguistics. The definitions are grouped into three blocks: words and expressions, how a text is built, and sources.
A dictionary entry is more than a definition. Labels, examples and shades of meaning often tell you more about a word than the first line of the definition.
Vocabulary
- Polysemy
- The property of a word having several related meanings. The word "key" can mean a thing that opens a lock, a set of answers or a musical scale; the context selects the right meaning.
- Idiom
- A set expression whose meaning does not add up from the meanings of its individual words, such as the Russian "bit' baklushi" (to idle about). It is looked up in a dictionary of idioms, not word by word.
- Catchphrase
- A pithy phrase that has entered everyday speech from a book, a film or a proverb and is now used without reference to its author.
- Officialese
- A heavy style with chains of nouns and passive constructions such as "carry out the implementation". It makes reading harder and can almost always be put more simply.
Text
- Context
- The surroundings of a word or phrase: neighbouring sentences, the subject of the whole text, the time and purpose of its writing. Without context it is easy to misunderstand what is said.
- Thesis
- The main claim the author wants to convey and prove. The other parts of a text usually serve to explain or support it.
- Notes
- A condensed record of the content in your own words that keeps the main ideas and logic. Unlike excerpts, good notes are coherent and make sense without the original text.
- Dictionary label
- An abbreviation in a dictionary entry that specifies where and how a word is used: archaic, colloquial, technical, figurative.
Sources
- Primary source
- The text in which an idea or quotation first appeared: the work itself, the original document, the author's original article.
- Secondary source
- A text that retells, quotes or discusses a primary source. Useful for an overview, but it may contain inaccuracies.
- Explanatory dictionary
- A dictionary that explains the meanings of words in a single language; every language has its own. For Russian, Dahl's dictionary appeared in 1863–1866 and Ozhegov's was first published in 1949.
- Text corpus
- A large searchable collection of real texts; many languages have one. The Russian National Corpus opened to users in 2004 and shows how Russian words are actually used.
Where these definitions come in handy
- Practical
How to read a contract or a manual without missing anything, plus a catalogue of practical articles.
- Questions
Short answers about focus while reading, word meanings and tracing a quotation to its source.
- Collections
Reading paths: talking about a book with a teenager, a document before signing, popular science.
- Old home (archive) (in Russian)
The old address of the former home page and tips on searching for archived texts yourself.
Read next
- Questions
Short answers about focus while reading, word meanings and tracing a quotation to its source.
- Topics
Four sections: reading, words and expressions, quotations and sources, summarising and writing.
- Home
A reference on understanding texts: difficult paragraphs, word meanings, quotations, summaries and notes.
What this page draws on
- Russian explanatory dictionaries (by Vladimir Dahl and Sergei Ozhegov; general principles)
- Russian National Corpus
- Reference portals on the Russian language (general information)
Dictionaries are revised, definitions are refined and corpora keep adding new examples of usage, so for a precise answer check the current edition of the dictionary. This reference describes general reading techniques and does not replace advice from a lawyer, doctor or other specialist on the content of a particular document.