hellog〜英語史ブログ / 2025-03-10

■ #5796. ghost word を OED で引いてみた [lexicography][word_formation][folk_etymology][ghost_word][terminology]

　昨日の記事「#5795. ghost word 再訪」 ([2025-03-09-1]) で取り上げた興味深い語彙的現象について，もう少し追いかけたい．OED に ghost word (NOUN) が立項されているので引用しよう．

A word or word form that has come into existence by error rather than established usage, e.g. as a result of a typographical error, the incorrect transcription of a manuscript, an incorrect definition in a dictionary, etc.

　1887　Report upon 'Ghost-words', or Words which have no real Existence... We should jealously guard against all chances of giving any undeserved record of words which had never any real existence, being mere coinages due to the blunders of printers or scribes, or to the perfervid imaginations of ignorant or blundering editors. (W. W. Skeat in Transactions of Philological Society 1885--7 vol. 20 350)
　1888　The word meant is estures, bad spelling of estres; and eftures is a ghost-word. (W. W. Skeat in Notes & Queries 30 June 504/1)
　1977　He [sc. Murray] found a special class of ‘ghost words’, misspelled or ill-defined items that had been admitted to some previous dictionary, thus undergoing an illegitimate birth. (Time 26 December 54/2)
　2019　The project will uncover previously unrecorded words, excise ghost words and suggest new or revised definitions. (TendersInfo (Nexis) 21 May)

　ghost word の栄えある初例は1887年の Skeat のもので，これは「#2725. ghost word」 ([2016-10-12-1]) でも引用した通りである．いずれにしても緩い定義なので緩く付き合っていくのがよさそうな用語だが，あまりに魅力的な響きで気になってしまうのは仕方ないのだろうか．このように緩くとった「幽霊語」は，少なくとも英語において（そして推測するに日本語など他の言語においても）思いのほか多いのではないだろうか．

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