Abstract:

Dictionary is a source that every language user frequently applies to. In terms of preparation purposes and the qualities they carry, the dictionaries are divided into various classes. With this distinction, there are also common points in which the dictionaries generally combine. The head of a searched article in the dictionary is designed to be easily found by the dictionary user and is one of these common points in which each dictionary user uses "catchword" and "catch letters" (gösterge). In this study, we will focus on the terms "catchword" and "catch letters" which we know in the dictionaries with the function of the subjects but have not yet been studied in Turkey. To do this, first and foremost, the dictionaries and sources written in the native and/or foreign languages will be scaned to identify the meanings of the terms "catchword" and "catch letters". This will be more widely focused on the field of the dictionary science. Then, starting from the nearest past (1890 in the Ottoman), the forms of use of "catchword" and "catch letters" in the Arabic and Latin Turkish dictionaries will be sampled and tagged. Finally, the use of the terms "catchword" and "catch letters" in the Turkish dictionaries will be assessed and the recommended Turkish responses for the terms in question will be given.