: modified 15.02.26

3. The Rhymer

5. Settings

4. Built-in Dictionaries

Built-in dictionaries for this program are an even more optional feature than the rhyme book. If you're happy with the basic level of Word (the dictionary remembers specific word forms of unknown words), then there's no point in wasting time on this section. Perhaps it's worth reading about the online dictionaries (spelling, explanatory, synonyms) that are configured for access in the program – see p.5.5.

However, since I managed to make the built-in dictionaries for Ukrainian and Russian at least somewhat usable while configuring the program, I'm leaving the built-in English dictionaries available in the hopes that someone will eventually create their own dictionaries or use the existing ones. Access is available from the "Built-in Dictionaries" main menu item and by clicking the button , and the dictionary of all forms for a specific word can be accessed from the context menu of the text editing window.

Unfortunately, purchasing a sufficiently comprehensive online orthoepic dictionary with the right to distribute it (either free or paid) is hardly feasible for me (I'd rather die than pay), nor is creating such a dictionary myself. Each dictionary for each language has its own characteristics and degree of usefulness for the user.

Basic dictionaries cannot serve as a full-fledged reference book – use online dictionaries (links to some are available in the program menu), or better yet, verified paper dictionaries. The content and design of online dictionaries are entirely the responsibility of their owners. Due to design changes, it is possible that some online dictionaries will no longer open properly when linked from my program. In this case (or if you have any suggestions for the list of dictionaries), please let me know.

The program's internal dictionaries are intended for internal purposes—for example, for maintaining user dictionaries. Unless you're a programmer looking to create something similar, there's little point in worrying too much about the contents of this chapter.

Are you still reading? OK.

How was the list of dictionaries compiled? To implement the program's main function, a dictionary of all word forms with stress marks is sufficient. For the rhyme dictionary, a similar dictionary of orthoepic forms (transcriptions) of these word forms is needed. However, since these dictionaries, from a programming perspective, are built as index files based on a spelling dictionary and reference books of paradigms and stress patterns, and I wanted to give users the ability to build their own dictionaries, these were also added.

Three levels of dictionaries have been implemented: base, user, and work-specific dictionaries. When analyzing, dictionaries of all forms are searched in reverse order, resulting in a word descriptor from a work dictionary taking precedence over a word from a user dictionary, and both take precedence over the base dictionary.

The dictionaries of proper nouns (personal, geographical names) are structurally identical to the spelling dictionary. This division was made because these terms would clutter the rhyme dictionary, but they can be enabled or disabled at will. Currently, the base dictionary of names is sparsely populated, and whether to use the user or work-specific dictionary is up to you.

4.1. Browsing Dictionaries

The following discussion uses the example of basic English dictionaries. The viewing window for the spelling dictionary has four main panels:

1. Toolbar.
2. Current dictionary.
3. Dictionary tree.
4. Browser.

Panels 2-4 can be resized to suit your needs by dragging the borders. The current dictionary can be expanded to fill the entire screen using the button .

The user selects the desired dictionary from the dictionary tree or selects a selection from the context menu. To return to the previous dictionary (or to the main program window), click the button .

Navigating through the dictionary text is done manually or using the search function. The search window is opened directly or contextually (by typing the first character in the current dictionary panel). The search is performed using the current dictionary key, and results are displayed as you type. If a character is unacceptable for the current dictionary, it is not entered into the search window, which turns yellow. If the entered text is not found in the dictionary, the window turns red.

The spelling dictionary is the most complex dictionary in this program's database. It forms the basis for many actions, and its entries are displayed to illustrate the work of other dictionaries. In its simplest form, when viewing an entry in this dictionary, we see a table of its declension/conjugation, in which word forms are highlighted and separated into the invariable part of the word (base) and the variable ending. The stressed symbol is also highlighted.

The current dictionary menu (see image) and the toolbar buttons partially overlap. Only the orthographic dictionary and the dictionary of proper names are available for correction. When editing or deleting, you can choose to edit a specific word form (if it's defined with multiple lexemes).

4.2. Adding a Word to the Dictionary

Adding a word to the dictionary can be initiated from the context menu of the editing window (by right-clicking on the desired word) or by using the button in the dictionary toolbar (in this case, the word must be entered in the search field). A form similar to the following appears on the screen:

The main fields are for entering a word and its transcription, broken down into syllables with the stressed syllable indicated. The program attempts to find something similar to those in the dictionary, but editing is necessary.

At a minimum, it's advisable to specify the word's syllable breakdown with the stressed syllable. This will allow the program to use the entered word to construct the rhythmic scheme of the verse.

If you also want to enter a transcription (buttons for entering special characters are located below the field), the program can search for rhymes with the entered word. You can find the transcription online by clicking the button . If you check the "Dictionary" checkbox, the online dictionary will be displayed each time you add a word. The search is performed in Google, with a query like «parts of speech, transcription, syllables of the English word "..."». AI review appears first in the results. In my observations, 80% of the time the AI produces very clear information, 15% of the time AI forgets the original word and starts talking about a similar one, and in another 5% it spews out blatant misinformation, since AI can't even count syllables in its own text. You have to sort out further search results.

The "Pronunciation Key" hint from the "The Free Dictionary" website can be seen by clicking the button .

A space is used for syllable breakdown, and the symbol «`» is placed before the stressed syllable (it can be moved using the buttons ).

If desired, you can also specify the word type (in some cases, this will eliminate the need to manually enter the word forms generated by the main word). The minimum requirement here is to specify the lexeme type with a zero after its designation (for example, "v0" for verbs).

The word type is determined by selecting from a list consisting of two parts: a list of types and a list of lexemes implemented in the program. The program attempts to display the most suitable ones (from its point of view) first. Unfortunately, this algorithm is still very imperfect.

You can disable the display of lists with the button and expand them with the button . To check the effect of editing on the lexeme content, use the button . The "Sheer" and "Simply" checkboxes affect the contents of the lists.

If a word is usually capitalized or written as an abbreviation, you can specify this before saving.

4.3. Correcting a Word in the Dictionary

Correcting a word in the dictionary can be initiated from the context dictionary menu or by using the button in the dictionary toolbar. If the word is described by multiple lexemes, a list of them is offered for selection, and a form similar to the following appears on the screen.

Green triangles mark the word forms to be corrected. When selected, a form similar to the form for entering a new word is displayed.

The last line contains links for entering results.

The "Change" link is used to change the current lexeme code. The source code is the first word form and a list of matching lexemes (corrections to other word forms are ignored). Therefore, the screen display when clicking the "Change" link is the same as when correcting the first word form. If the correction also affected the lexeme code, the result is saved to the dictionary and editing is stopped.

Clicking the "Save" link stops editing and saves the resulting correction to the dictionary. If possible, a lexeme with the same code is used. If not, a suitable lexeme is selected from the existing ones. If there is no suitable lexeme, the user is prompted to create a new lexeme.

Clicking the "Deny" link does not save the correction results to the dictionary, and editing is stopped. Clicking the button again has a similar effect.