Disputatio:Alimentum

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[recensere] Lemma singulare, definitio pluralis

The title is Alimentum, but the defined word is Alimenta. This inconsistency violates a near-inflexible rule of dictionary-making: define only the lemma. If a singular word can't conveniently be defined, the best way to proceed is ordinarily to use the equivalent of "X is any of," or, if a quantitative characterization can sharpen the definition, "X is any of several" and "X is any of numerous" and such. E.g. (from Webster's Collegiate): "surfperch . . . any of a family (Embiotocidae) of small or medium-sized viviparous fishes. . . ." IacobusAmor 04:40, 30 Ianuarii 2007 (UTC)