Book excerpt: Who compiles dictionaries and other reference works? Which are used by whom? How do they achieve their purpose? Lexicography is a very important subject and the product of lexicography, the Dictionary, is a valuable resource in language learning. Teaching and Researching Lexicography explains the relations between lexicographic practice (dictionary-making) and theory (dictionary research), with special reference to the perspectives of: * dictionary history * dictionary criticism * dictionary typology * dictionary structure * dictionary use The final section of the book contains a variety of useful resources, including relevant related websites, a glossary of terms and a bibliography of cited dictionaries. This section can also be found on the Teaching and Researching Lexicography companion web-site. Written in a highly accessible style, Teaching and Researching Lexicography provides the most comprehensive, up-to-date and international coverage of this field in English, and will be of great interest to lexicographers, language teachers and applied linguists.