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Business & Technical Writing/the purpose of page numbers in the dictionary

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Expert: - 1/8/2005


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what is the purpose of having page numbers in the english dictionary

Answer
The same as having page numbers in any other document, I suppose. Granting that the alphabetical structure of the dictionary serves much the same purpose, if pages are not numbered a discontinuity in the production process would not be nearly so obvious if there were no page numbers. It's just an additional reference feature, and it probably never occurred to anyone to publish a large volume without page numbers.

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Dan Smith

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I have been a professional writer and editor for more than 30 years, taught speech and English composition at the university level, and have developed speech and English composition courses and seminars for businesses. I am experienced in editing a wide variety of materials, especially business, scientific, and other academic papers. I am familiar with all the major style guides.

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I have edited any number of graduate papers and other technical materials in such advanced fields as clinical psychology, civil and electrical engineering, and semiconductor fabrication. I have extensive experience in working with non-native English speakers.

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