Where to Find It When It's Findable

[Webmaster's Note: Taken from the June 1996 issue of The Enigma, and written by Sibyl. It was written for 10C, the previous edition of our standard reference, but it applies to 11C, too. -- djr]

1. In the brackets after an entry word or phrase.
   1. A foreign word in the etymology of an English or Anglicized one:

         oubliette [F, fr. MF, fr. oublier to forget . . . ]

   2. Or a name in its etymology:

         Schwann cell [. . . Theodor Schwann]

   3. A scientific (binomial nomenclature) name, as (Primula veris) in the "cowslip" entry. [Thanks, 100 Down.]

2. In the Biographical section, most often as an alternate name or as a "real name" instead of a title, or as an epithet:

      Teresa, Mother Agnes Gonxsha Bojaxhiu
      Dalai Lama Tenzin Gyatso
      Atilla the Scourge of God

3. In the Foreign Words & Phrases section, probably as the translation of a famous foreign phrase:

      où sont les neiges d'antan : where are the snows of yesteryear?

4. In an abbreviation, as the full-out version:

      SEATO : Southeast Asia Treaty Organization

5. In examples with or under an entry word. I see two kinds; there may be more.
   1. an italicized phrase.

         skeleton . . . skeleton in the closet.

   2. a non-italic example illustrating a particular usage -- under a word, with the word replaced by a swung dash:

         closet . . . come out of the ~.

The list assumes that you can't find the thing as a regular entry: Salvation Army, for instance, though it appears as an abbreviation under SA, is simply an untagged entry phrase.

Words in tables, NI2 start charts, and so on, are usually treated as entries, though they might be noted as being out of alphabetical order.

I think that covers it, except for really strange stuff that usually needs a puzzle note anyway -- remember Newrow's rubric for port authority? The name of a wine expert whose photo is in the front pages of NI2.

This page was last updated on Thursday, June 18, 2015. /webmaster