A Research Into The Metalanguage In The English Learner's Dictionary

The metalanguage originates from logic,and then it spreads out rapidly in the field of linguistics,lexicography,and Natural Language Processing.Especially in the field of lexicography,Wierzbicka's Natural Semantic Metalanguage links most closely with dictionary compiling.Definition is the kernel of a dictionary.Controlled defining vocabulary(DV) signifies the beginning of English Learner's Dictionary(ELD).This defining pattern is followed by the "Big Four" with the use of DV lists.Although the DV lists are held within range,they are far from real metalexicon.And Wierzbicka's metalexicon is over-simplified and not adaptable to writing of definition.The metalexicon we derived, based on real definition text and frequency-calculating method,could be put into application of definition writing to alleviate the circularities and provide a reference for the construction of the middle level of the macrostructure of a cognitive ELD.This thesis falls into five chapters:Chapter 1 first gives a brief introduction to metalanguage,including the original meaning and the changes of the connotation in different fields,especially the connotation in lexicography.And by literature review we can see the previous work that has been done by forerunners.Chapter 2 gives an introduction of the history of the ELD,mainly presenting the generations that the ELD has gone through.By analyzing and comparing the DV lists of the "Big Four",we can see although the different dictionaries' DV lists vary from each other,they are in similar semantic construction.Chapter 3 is a diachronic analysis of the DV lists of Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English(LDOCE) series with comparisons of semantic distribution and word frequency.And we examine the influence to metalanguage by different means of defining and defining styles.From the changes of DV lists in LDOCE series,we have an insight into the orientation of the ELD:the application of basic cognitive experiences and alleviation of circularities.Chapter 4 elucidates the problem caused by traditional defining styles and the contribution made by Natural Semantic Metalanguage,and initiates a derivation of metalexicon with a slight alteration of the method exploited by forerunners.An analysis is made to the words appearing in high frequency,and the derivation of metalexicon is accomplished with analyses of the semantic distribution and word frequency.Chapter 5 reaches a conclusion on the analysis:1) the features of metalexicon,2) the utility of metalexicon in the ELD,3) limitations of this study,and 4) suggestions for further study.