NAME
dict – dictionary browser |
SYNOPSIS
dict [ –k ] [ –d dictname ] [ –c command ] [ pattern ] |
DESCRIPTION
Dict is a dictionary browser. If a pattern is given on the command
line, dict prints all matching entries; otherwise it repeatedly
accepts and executes commands. The options are –d dictname Use the given dictionary. The default is oed, the second edition of the Oxford English Dictionary. A list of available dictionaries is printed by option –d?. –c command Execute one command and quit. The command syntax is described below. –k Print a pronunciation key. Patterns are regular expressions (see regexp(6)), with an implicit leading ^ and trailing $. Patterns are matched against an index of headwords and variants, to form a `match set'. By default, both patterns and the index are folded: upper case characters are mapped into their lower case equivalents, and accented characters are mapped into their base equivalents. In interactive mode, there is always a `current match set' and a `current entry' within the match set. Commands can change either or both, as well as print the entries or information about them.
Commands have an address followed by a command letter. Addresses
have the form:
The command letters come in pairs: a lower case and the corresponding
upper case letter. The lower case version prints something about
the current entry only, and advances the current entry to the
next in the match set (wrapping around to the beginning after
the last). The upper case version prints something about
all of the match set and resets the current entry to the beginning
of the set.
If no command letter is given for the first command, H is assumed.
After an H, the default command is p. Otherwise, the default command
is the previous command. |
FILES
/lib/dict/oed2 /lib/dict/oed2index Other files in /lib. |
SEE ALSO
regexp(6) |
SOURCE
/sys/src/cmd/dict |
BUGS
A font with wide coverage of the Unicode Standard should be used
for best results. (Try /lib/font/bit/pelm/unicode.9.font.) If the pattern doesn't begin with a few literal characters, matching takes a long time. The dictionaries are not distributed outside Bell Labs. |