How Reliable Are Dictionaries?

我在AUE網站上逛到這篇,雖然我已經知道最早的OED是源自一群自願者之手,但是讀到這篇還是有些驚訝:
http://alt-usage-english.org/excerpts/fxhowrel.html 
基本上是大家互相抄,然後最開始的又是抄自OED,難怪那些紀錄很多字義的字典會有那麼多奇奇怪怪的字義。
關於OED,在 Wikipedia上有這記載:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/OED#Origins
.....one that would be based on contributions from a large number of volunteer readers, who would read books, copy out passages illustrating various actual uses of words onto quotation slips, and mail them to the editor. In 1858 the Society agreed in principle to the project: A New English Dictionary on Historical Principles (NED).....
這也解釋了為何Dr. Eye的內容那樣差。英文原文版的字典內容如果有問題最低限度有英文為母語的編輯群能夠更正,但是Dr. Eye...我想除了copy過來還是只能copy,內容有問題恐怕他們的工作人員沒人有能力更正,然後再加上錯誤翻譯(我想這也是從別處抄來的).....