Wiktionary:Information desk

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Latest comment: 5 days ago by Andrew Sheedy in topic Quick question on inclusion criteria
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Welcome to the Information desk of Wiktionary, a place where users can ask questions about words and about Wiktionary, ask for help, or post miscellaneous ideas that don’t fit in any of the other rooms.

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Vector version of logo?

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I'm currently zoomed in 300% in my browser so I can hold my computer far away, and all of the text looks great but the wiktionary logo looks a little bad. Maybe we could use a nice vector version of it if one exists? I also don't know how one sets that image in the sidebar. Dingolover6969 (talk) 20:45, 4 October 2024 (UTC)Reply

Happens in Vector 2010, where it is PNG, not Vector 2022, where it is SVG. Another reason to default to the latter already. Preferences → Appearance → Skin. Fay Freak (talk) 20:58, 4 October 2024 (UTC)Reply
While MediaWiki does support SVG logos and there is a perfectly fine SVG version, 1.) it would have to be changed at phab: and 2.) for some weird reason, I think all of these WMF wikis prefer a file named "File:Wiki.png" and "File:favicon.png", instead of SVG. —Justin (koavf)TCM 21:01, 4 October 2024 (UTC)Reply

Translation pages broken

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Translations on pages such as bird, fox, and flower are broken, showing "true" instead of the translation. This is seemingly due to the use of {{tt}} and {{tt+}}—the ones using non-multitrans templates {{t}} and {{t+}} work fine. However, these are all inside {{multitrans}}, so shouldn't they use {{tt}} and {{tt+}} instead of {{t}} and {{t+}}? If there has been a change and {{multitrans}} now uses the singular-t templates instead, shouldn't the double-t templates be redirected to the single-t ones, as to not break most translation pages? Ookap (talk) 18:51, 5 October 2024 (UTC)Reply

Related query, mostly as a curiosity—why do all the translation templates link to 蝴蝶? (see Special:WhatLinksHere/蝴蝶). Ookap (talk) 18:53, 5 October 2024 (UTC)Reply
@Ookap: I'm not seeing any of this. All of the translations in all of the pages you mentioned are showing just as translations for me (Vector 2010 on desktop). Do you have any gadgets enabled? Are you viewing on desktop or on mobile? Have you tried on other browsers or logged out? as for Special:WhatLinksHere/蝴蝶, I see 131 pages, which isn't unusual for a Chinese character entry. If everything was linking there, I would see thousands. Chuck Entz (talk) 20:02, 5 October 2024 (UTC)Reply
Clearly whatever happened has been fixed since I asked! I originally saw this from a friend who was using mobile (logged-in), and then checked my own desktop (logged-in); another friend (mobile, logged-out) mentioned the same problem ten minutes later (both sent screenshots, although I didn't take any of my own). This was all around 18:00 UTC; I can no longer reproduce this and everything seems fine now.
As for 蝴蝶, that's just something I missed—it's linked in the documentation of the templates, and so isn't transcluded and shouldn't be a problem. Ookap (talk) 21:19, 5 October 2024 (UTC)Reply

Citation needed template needed

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On Wikipedia we can add w:Template:Citation needed.

What is the equivalent template on Wiktionary? Jidanni (talk) 09:26, 6 October 2024 (UTC)Reply

If you think a certain word or definition may not exist or be accurate, tag it with {{rfv|foo}} or {{rfv-sense|foo}} (where "foo" is the usually-ISO-derived language code of the language the word or definition is in) and click the link the template generates to list it at the appropriate WT:RFV subpage. If you think a certain etymological claim may be wrong, bring it up in the Etymology Scriptorium. For most other claims, e.g. if you link a "(rare)" label is wrong, the Tea Room is generally a good place to bring it up. - -sche (discuss) 20:03, 6 October 2024 (UTC)Reply

American vs British spelling

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What is wiktionary's policy on favouring American or British spelling? Is it similar to enwiki's w:WP:ENGVAR? I couldn't find it anywhere. (I notice that things are generally inconsistent: colour is listed as an alt. spelling of color, but favourite/favorite is the reverse). Thanks, Cremastra (talk) 15:44, 6 October 2024 (UTC)Reply

Broadly similar to ENGVAR, entries tend to be centrali(s|z)ed on whichever entry was created first. (Some people treat -i(s|z)e verbs differently and always lemmatize -ize, since it's found in both varieties.) Occasionally there is teeth-gnashing.
In rare cases, not just when it comes to US/UK spellings but even when it comes to things like hyphenation vs spacing vs solidspelling, you may find that one definition is only or mostly attested in one spelling while another definition is only or mostly attested in another spelling: you should probably raise such cases here or in the Tea Room so other people can confirm the senses are really spelling-specific, but such cases may have to be handled exceptionally, e.g. explaining the situation in usage notes in both entries (or defining each entry as an alternative spelling of the other, as with blacksnake vs black snake). - -sche (discuss) 19:58, 6 October 2024 (UTC)Reply

"Related to" vs. "Relating to"

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Lately I have been adding Czech relational adjectives (such as úřednický, retní, or pudový) and consistently defined them using the phrase "of or related to". I have recently noticed that similar words in English (such as clerical or instinctual) are (almost?) always defined using the phrase "of or relating to". Is there a difference in meaning or is it just stylistic choice? CaptainPermaban (talk) 18:43, 9 October 2024 (UTC)Reply

I've seen "of or pertaining to" too. It doesn't make any difference, they're synonymous Denazz (talk) 15:11, 11 October 2024 (UTC)Reply

How long for RFC (request for cleanup) to age out (16 years?)

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So I was checking zoning as the word looked weird as I typed it in (learning another language makes all words look weird?) and come upon

A user suggests that this English entry be cleaned up, giving the reason: “noun too long and complex”.

I try to go peek at the message's mentioned RFC list entry given the link Requests_for_cleanup#zoning and there's no entry.

I found a possible explanation: the rfc insertion is almost 16 years old! And in all that time no one has agreed enough to bother doing anything. And I don't agree either - I think it's fine.

If it's aged out of the RFC list, why not delete the template from the article? Why memorialize someone's dispepsia like some precious trichobezoar. Shenme (talk) 23:07, 9 October 2024 (UTC)Reply

@Shenme: It was never in the list (the RfC would be archived on the entry talk page), which is likely why no one noticed it. J3133 (talk) 04:20, 10 October 2024 (UTC)Reply
Thank you. I've removed the incompletely filed RFC from the entry. Shenme (talk) 02:30, 11 October 2024 (UTC)Reply

Dead link, but no {{dead link}}?

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Under Nootka č̕aʔak, the reference Ravinski 2005 contains a dead link. I was going to add {{dead link}}, but that doesn't exist, and I can't find any equivalent template on Wiktionary. What should be done in this situation? — Äþelwulf (talk) 21:25, 14 October 2024 (UTC)Reply

One approach is to replace it by a live link, such as https://open.library.ubc.ca/media/stream/pdf/831/1.0099810/1.  --Lambiam 18:59, 21 October 2024 (UTC)Reply

Using {{quote-book}} to quote from the foreword, translator's note, etc.

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What is the appropriate way to use this template when quoting from a book that is not an anthology (i.e. it has one listed author, or a few authors that do not get separate chapter/section level attribution), where the quote is, however, not from the listed author(s)? I am specifically thinking of the case where a work has a foreword, editor's or translator's note, etc. written by someone other than the credited author. Take the following as an example, the final quote given for the second definition of treat:

1981, Aristotle, translated by W. Rhys Roberts and Ingram Bywater, Rhetoric and On Poetics, Pennsylvania: The Franklin Library, →OL, A Note on the Illustrations:
Rhetoric includes the earliest known theory on the proper use of metaphor; On Poetics treats the role of symbolism in drama and poetry.

As you can see, the quote seems to imply Aristotle wrote these words, even though it is very obvious from reading the actual text of the quote that almost certainly isn't the case. The only indication of this from the attribution line is from the very last part, the section parameter, which is A Note on the Illustrations, as well as the fact it was translated. If this were actually an anthology, I believe the author parameter would be set to the actual author of the specific chapter the quote is from, but I don't think that is appropriate here. Yet I am unsure what the alternative is. Is there a better way to handle this with this template, or perhaps there is a different template to use altogether? Brusquedandelion (talk) 02:17, 24 October 2024 (UTC)Reply

@Brusquedandelion: The author= parameter should be set to the actual author of the quotation in question (i.e. the author of the foreword, etc.), while a separate mainauthor= parameter should be set to the author of the overall work. A chapter= parameter should also be added and set to the name of the section or chapter written by the non-main-author. (Unfortunately, it looks like the section= parameter doesn’t give the desired results; the section must be given with chapter= for the quote to display properly.) — Vorziblix (talk · contribs) 05:04, 1 November 2024 (UTC)Reply

{help|Categories}

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At red Category:Greek usually uncountable proper nouns I added {auto cat}, read the instructions at Help:Category#How_to_create_a_category but I cannot find which poscatboiler has the Category:Greek proper nouns by inflection type. Also, I do not know whom to call for help on specifics (e.g. Cats, a language xx, a topic, specialists on Template:place) These things are very difficult for us, non-administrators. A {template|help} or {alert} would be nice, if volunteer-sysops would like to sign in to help. Thank you. ‑‑Sarri.greek  I 11:02, 25 October 2024 (UTC)Reply

Request assistance in modifying the styles to accommodate dark mode

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Greetings, I would like to request assistance in modifying the styles of certain Wiktionary templates and tables to accommodate dark mode. The primary concern is that the contrast between the background and text colors is insufficient.

The templates in question include, but are not limited to, the following:

This request primarily concerns templates categorized under Inflection-table templates by language.

Thank you for your attention to this matter. Σ>―(〃°ω°〃)♡→L.C.D.-{に〇〇する}-15:07, 26 October 2024 (UTC)Reply

@Ryanlo713: great minds think alike. See WT:Beer parlour/2024/October#Towards a Standardization of Inflection Tables. Chuck Entz (talk) 00:20, 27 October 2024 (UTC)Reply
Thank you for sharing this information. I will review the discussion at my earliest convenience. Σ>―(〃°ω°〃)♡→L.C.D.-{に〇〇する}-08:56, 27 October 2024 (UTC)Reply
@Ryanlo713: Do you have experience working with Lua or CSS? The idea is that you need to replace all the hardcoded colours with a Palette variable (e.g. var(--wikt-palette-cyan). Generally an approximation of the original colour should be okay but keep in mind that some templates use a specific colour to represent a language or nationality. Ioaxxere (talk) 06:09, 27 October 2024 (UTC)Reply
I have no experience with Lua; however, I do have a background in CSS.
Thank you for your assistance. Σ>―(〃°ω°〃)♡→L.C.D.-{に〇〇する}-08:54, 27 October 2024 (UTC)Reply

Automatically add pages to Category:Japanese extended shinjitai kanji

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Currently, there is a Category:Japanese extended shinjitai kanji category containing extended Shinjitai Kanji, but the list is not exhaustive. After some investigation, I found the reason is that there are multiple templates related to extended Shinjitai Kanji. The first one is Template:ja-ex shinjitai form of, the second one is Template:Han simplified forms (with ex=y parameter), and the third one is Template:ja-kanji forms (also with ex=y parameter). Currently, only the first template will add the page including it to the category automatically.

I would like to have the last two templates add appropriate pages to the category automatically, but the logic is somewhat complicated, and I have never edited templates before. The problem is that these templates will be used in multiple pages, but only the page corresponding to the extended Shinjitai Kanji should be added. For example, is an extended Shinjitai form of , and the corresponding Simplified Chinese form is . Template:Han simplified forms is used in all these three pages with identical parameters, but only (which is in the second field) should go into the extended Shinjitai category.

Could anyone please implement this feature? Lhy7889678 (talk) 15:22, 30 October 2024 (UTC)Reply

Quick question on inclusion criteria

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Hi there! I'm a bit new to editing, and wanted to just have some quick confirmation before doing anything. Specifically, I've been wanting to add new senses of the following two symbols; (subculture, alterhumanity) and & (subculture, multiplicity/plurality) but I wanted to check the attestation rules before adding such definitions, as I am not sure if "clearly widespread use" applies here, nor do I have the technical knowhow to look for attestable quotations on the web. This was mainly spurred by the existing definition for the similar subculture symbol ΘΔ.

I've already added the main widespread computing definition for (was surprised it wasn't there before) but just want confirmation before jumping the gun adding these other two definitions, or in fact any definitions in the future. Would this be fine? Adrmcr (talk) 22:15, 3 November 2024 (UTC)Reply

@Adrmcr It would be fine, but I don't think they'd meet the requirements for "widespread use." You are more than welcome to add them, even without cites, but if someone challenges them and no cites are found, they could be removed. Andrew Sheedy (talk) 05:45, 4 November 2024 (UTC)Reply