Why does a lexicographer's initial hypothesis about a word's meaning, formed before corpus analysis, sometimes lead to inaccurate dictionary definitions?

💡 Explanation

Inaccurate definitions occur because the lexicographer might unconsciously favor corpus examples that support their pre-existing hypothesis; this is confirmation bias. This skewed selection process therefore leads to a definition reflecting the initial bias rather than the full range of the word’s usage, rather than a purely objective assessment.

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