>>>Webster's International, anything prior to about 1975. The OED, anything prior to about 1995 and I haven't checked later ones.
And yes, I do think that a definition that isn't a label is more advanced. I also think that the general education of today on basics is certainly no better than that of decades ago, and probably more than a little worse. I place part of that blame and responsibility on the declining quality of dictionaries, and there are many other places for blame and responsibility too.<<<
All right, I don't have the 24-volume unabridged OED in my office, but I have my copy of the 2500-page Shorter O. E.D printed in 1959. Definition number 5 for the noun "inflation" reads, "Increases beyond proper limits; esp. of prices, the issue of paper money, etc." And "inflationary" is defined as "marked by inflation of prices."
I regret that my Merriam Webster is no older than 1995, but its wording is virtually the same as that in the Internet Merriam Webster.
When you say "International," I take it you mean the 2nd edition of the Merriam Webster New International Dictionary which I, like you, prefer to the Third International that began to be published in 1961. But I prefer it because of the wealth of proper terms, such as important geological strata (Coconino, Chinle, etc.) and other words that were omitted from the Third.
I don't see that any of this is very relevant to the fact that for most people, in most times and places, "inflation" means a rise in prices. Such a rise can be caused either by an excess of money and credit or by shortages of goods, or both. To object to using the word "inflation" in this way is as sensible as trying to correct the usage of a person who says that he or she has a runny nose by saying, "No, you are suffering from a viral infection specific to the nasal mucous membranes." Furthermore, that might not even be the correct explanation. |
