This paper advocates a lexicographical approach to the treatment of collocations in dictionaries. A collocation is presented as an umbrella term for referring to word combinations that are typical for the kind of language in question, and which can be useful for re-use in text production or for assisting in text translation. They are composed of two or more orthographic words, do not constitute a full sentence, but offer potential users the possibility of obtaining relevant information. The way they are dealt with is exemplifi ed in the Accounting Dictionaries, a set of online specialized dictionaries that represent a complex system of specifi c lexicographical and technological options for creating interaction between database and dictionary. By February, the accounting database will allow potential users to retrieve data from twenty-three different accounting dictionaries, each focused on a specifi c function and use situation. For some of these dictionaries, typically translation and production dictionaries, the inclusion of collocations is a must, as this paper aims to show by defending the view that the linguistic concept of collocation is not adequate for lexicography, that the inclusion of collocations is only necessary in some dictionaries, and that their lexicographical consideration must agree with the true nature of lexicography; for instance, with the principle of relevance applied to specialized lexicography, where we mean the condition of being directly connected with the subject fi eld, the dictionary function(s), the use situation in which the dictionaries are intended to be used, their access route(s), and the levels of competence of the intended users.
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