Wiktionary:Referencing dictionaries

This is a Wiktionary policy, guideline or common practices page. Specifically it is a policy think tank, working to develop a formal policy.

Policies – Entries: CFI - EL - NORM - NPOV - QUOTE - REDIR - DELETE. Languages: LT - AXX. Others: BLOCK - BOTS - VOTES.

Dictionaries are not primary sources, and cannot be used for attestation.

Dictionaries are, however, useful references for substantiation (as per ELE).

Use and misuse of referencing dictionaries

Referring to other dictionaries is fine to clarify (or even correct) a definition.
But other dictionaries are not valid citations for a request for verification.

Appearance in a dictionary does not satisfy the Criteria For Inclusion (CFI), and a dictionary reference does not satisfy a Request For Verification (RFV).

User-contributed dictionaries are problematic because they are prone to nonce words and protologisms, but can provide color.

Referencing them as a main citation can be an indication that a word does not meet CFI.