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Usenet Posted 23 years ago
Usage
New Hampshire Supreme Court cites from 'Webster's Dictionary'
I was watching Paula Zahn Now on CNN and a legal case in New Hampshire was the subject of discussion. The New Hampshire Supreme Court, deciding on a case in which a man divorced his wife on the basis of her having committed adultery, turned to "Webster's dictionary" to clarify the meaning of "adultery." When the definition of "adultery" was shown onscreen, the dictionary was referred to in the caption as "Webster's Dictionary."
Naturally, I wondered which "Webster's dictionary" was meant. So I took a look at Google News search. Thinking that it might have been a Merriam-Webster dictionary, I searched for
http://news.google.com/news?hl=en&ie=ISO-8859-1&edition=us&q=hampshire+adultery+webster+merriam
This got no hits. I then dropped "merriam" from the search:
http://news.google.com/news?hl=en&ie=ISO-8859-1&edition=us&q=hampshire+adultery+Webster
This received 53 hits.
So then I decided to go to the Web site of the New Hampshire Supreme Court. The opinion on the case, *In the Matter of David G. Blanchflower and Sian E. Blanchflower,* is given at
http://www.courts.state.nh.us/supreme/opinions/2003/blanc150.htm
The following is quoted from that page:
(quote)
The plain and ordinary meaning of adultery is "voluntary sexual intercourse between a married man and someone other than his wife or between a married woman and someone other than her husband." Webster's Third New International Dictionary 30 (unabridged ed. 1961). Although the definition does not specifically state that the "someone" with whom one commits adultery must be of the opposite gender, it does require sexual intercourse.
(end quote)
So the dictionary is *Webster's Third New International Dictionary.* I went back to Google News and searched for
http://news.google.com/news?hl=en&ie=ISO-8859-1&edition=us&q=hampshire+adultery+webster+%22new+international%22&btnG=Search+News
This turned up just one article, for WorldNetDaily, at
http://worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE ID=35496
which gave the full name of the dictionary, "Webster's Third New International Dictionary." One out of 53, in other word 1.89 percent, specified what dictionary was used in the legal decision.
Now, any dictionary is allowed to call itself "Webster's dictionary," so that just saying "Webster's dictionary" doesn't tell the television or reading public even what company published the dictionary. But even if we were to assume that most people would take "Webster's" to be referring to a "Merriam-Webster" dictionary, that would not tell us what dictionary was used. I expect quite a few people are not even aware of the existence of Webster's Third.
Raymond S. Wise
Minneapolis, Minnesota USA
E-mail: mplsray @ yahoo . com
Naturally, I wondered which "Webster's dictionary" was meant. So I took a look at Google News search. Thinking that it might have been a Merriam-Webster dictionary, I searched for
http://news.google.com/news?hl=en&ie=ISO-8859-1&edition=us&q=hampshire+adultery+webster+merriam
This got no hits. I then dropped "merriam" from the search:
http://news.google.com/news?hl=en&ie=ISO-8859-1&edition=us&q=hampshire+adultery+Webster
This received 53 hits.
So then I decided to go to the Web site of the New Hampshire Supreme Court. The opinion on the case, *In the Matter of David G. Blanchflower and Sian E. Blanchflower,* is given at
http://www.courts.state.nh.us/supreme/opinions/2003/blanc150.htm
The following is quoted from that page:
(quote)
The plain and ordinary meaning of adultery is "voluntary sexual intercourse between a married man and someone other than his wife or between a married woman and someone other than her husband." Webster's Third New International Dictionary 30 (unabridged ed. 1961). Although the definition does not specifically state that the "someone" with whom one commits adultery must be of the opposite gender, it does require sexual intercourse.
(end quote)
So the dictionary is *Webster's Third New International Dictionary.* I went back to Google News and searched for
http://news.google.com/news?hl=en&ie=ISO-8859-1&edition=us&q=hampshire+adultery+webster+%22new+international%22&btnG=Search+News
This turned up just one article, for WorldNetDaily, at
http://worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE ID=35496
which gave the full name of the dictionary, "Webster's Third New International Dictionary." One out of 53, in other word 1.89 percent, specified what dictionary was used in the legal decision.
Now, any dictionary is allowed to call itself "Webster's dictionary," so that just saying "Webster's dictionary" doesn't tell the television or reading public even what company published the dictionary. But even if we were to assume that most people would take "Webster's" to be referring to a "Merriam-Webster" dictionary, that would not tell us what dictionary was used. I expect quite a few people are not even aware of the existence of Webster's Third.
Raymond S. Wise
Minneapolis, Minnesota USA
E-mail: mplsray @ yahoo . com
Top answer
"New Hampshire Supreme Court cites from 'Webster's Dictionary'"? " myself here. '" Raymond S.
- "New Hampshire Supreme Court cites from 'Webster's Dictionary'"?
- " myself here.
- '" Raymond S.
- Wise Minneapolis, Minnesota USA E-mail: mplsray @ yahoo .
- com
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42 Answers
0
"New Hampshire Supreme Court cites from 'Webster's Dictionary'"?
I'll "Oy!" myself here. The subject line should have been "New Hampshire Supreme Court cites definition from 'Webster's Dictionary" or some such, not "cites from 'Webster's Dictionary.'"
Raymond S. Wise
Minneapolis, Minnesota USA
E-mail: mplsray @ yahoo . com
I'll "Oy!" myself here. The subject line should have been "New Hampshire Supreme Court cites definition from 'Webster's Dictionary" or some such, not "cites from 'Webster's Dictionary.'"
Raymond S. Wise
Minneapolis, Minnesota USA
E-mail: mplsray @ yahoo . com
00
[nq:1]The plain and ordinary meaning of adultery is "voluntary sexual intercourse between a married man and someone other than his wife or between a married woman and someone other than her husband."[/nq]
Wow. So if Bill had said 'I did not commit adultery with that woman, Miss Lewinsky', he would been off the hook?
John Dean
Oxford
De-frag to reply
Wow. So if Bill had said 'I did not commit adultery with that woman, Miss Lewinsky', he would been off the hook?
John Dean
Oxford
De-frag to reply
00
[nq:1]"New Hampshire Supreme Court cites from 'Webster's Dictionary'"? I'll "Oy!" myself here. The subject line should have been "New Hampshire Supreme Court cites definition from 'Webster's Dictionary" or some such, not "cites from 'Webster's Dictionary.'"[/nq]
Us attornies at lawr would say just "cites 'Webster's Dictionary.'"
Bob Lieblich
Lazy lawyer
Us attornies at lawr would say just "cites 'Webster's Dictionary.'"
Bob Lieblich
Lazy lawyer
00
[nq:2]The plain and ordinary meaning of adultery is "voluntary sexual ... between a married woman and someone other than her husband."[/nq]
[nq:1]Wow. So if Bill had said 'I did not commit adultery with that woman, Miss Lewinsky', he would been off the hook?[/nq]
You'd think so, wouldn't you? But then, what he actually said was "sexual relations," and a lot of good it did him. Legal niceti
[nq:1]Wow. So if Bill had said 'I did not commit adultery with that woman, Miss Lewinsky', he would been off the hook?[/nq]
You'd think so, wouldn't you? But then, what he actually said was "sexual relations," and a lot of good it did him. Legal niceti
00
[nq:1]http://worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE ID=35496 which gave the full name of the dictionary, "Webster's Third New International Dictionary." One out of 53, in ... what dictionary was used. I expect quite a few people are not even aware of the existence of Webster's Third.[/nq]
I am.
I am.
00
[nq:2]http://worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE ID=35496 which gave the full name of the dictionary, ... are not even aware of the existence of Webster's Third.[/nq]
[nq:1]I am. And I think you'll find that quite a few laypeople are. I know it's a shocking admission to make, but I'd never he
[nq:1]I am. And I think you'll find that quite a few laypeople are. I know it's a shocking admission to make, but I'd never he
00
[nq:2]I expect quite a few people are not even aware of the existence of Webster's Third.[/nq]
[nq:1]I am. And I think you'll find that quite a few laypeople are. I know it's a shocking admission to make, but I'd never heard of Merriam Webster until I started patronising this ng.[/nq]
I don't feel at all patronized (AmE spelling), nor does it surprise me that some people have heard of the
[nq:1]I am. And I think you'll find that quite a few laypeople are. I know it's a shocking admission to make, but I'd never heard of Merriam Webster until I started patronising this ng.[/nq]
I don't feel at all patronized (AmE spelling), nor does it surprise me that some people have heard of the
00
[nq:1] I know it's a shocking admission to make, but I'd never heard of Merriam Webster until I started patronising this ng.[/nq]
I used to call it "talking down" until I discovered Merriam Webster.
Matti
I used to call it "talking down" until I discovered Merriam Webster.
Matti
00
[nq:2]Wow. So if Bill had said 'I did not commit adultery with that woman,Miss Lewinsky', he would been off the hook?[/nq]
[nq:1]You'd think so, wouldn't you? But then, what he actually said was "sexual relations," and a lot of good it did him.[/nq]
Oh, but, but, but, but! I did read of a poll (no cite, of course) that said that the majority of college students agreed with him that it wasn
[nq:1]You'd think so, wouldn't you? But then, what he actually said was "sexual relations," and a lot of good it did him.[/nq]
Oh, but, but, but, but! I did read of a poll (no cite, of course) that said that the majority of college students agreed with him that it wasn
00
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