How to Format Definitions in a User Dictionary and Adding Pinyin Automatically?

[anhnha]

I would like to inquire about creating a user dictionary.

I am following the guide which requires the format to be as follows:

simplified[traditional]<tab>pinyin (with tone numbers)<tab>definition. For instance:

你 <tab> ni3 <tab> 1.너 2. 너희들 3. 사람 4. 서로의 의미를 나타냄

I am wondering if it is possible to add additional formatting to the definition section. Specifically, I would like to know if there is a way to format the definition into multiple lines, like this:

1.대명사 너. 자네. 당신.
你是谁?
nĭ shì shuí
너는 누구냐?
你猜他说什么?
nĭ cāi tā shuō shénme
그가 뭐라 말했는지 맞춰보세요?
你看, 多么可笑啊!
nĭ kàn duōme kĕxiào a
보세요, 얼마나 가소로운가!
你爸爸
nĭ bàbà
네 아빠

Currently, I have to combine all of them into a single line, which makes it difficult to read.
Additionally, I find using pinyin with tone numbers to be inconvenient. Is there a way to use markers instead or to have the pinyins autofilled as in a flashcard?"

 

[Shun]

Hi anhnha,

yes, you can have a look at this thread:

Multiple new lines in user defined flashcards

Perhaps this the flashcard exchange thread but hope to reach a larger audience here. Is there a way to introduce new lines in user generated definitions so that difference "meanings" can be numbered and start on new lines (i.e. formatted line the cards generated from dictionary entries)?

plecoforums.com

Pleco should understand tone marks such as the ones in your post, but pinyin autofilling currently only works for headwords.

Cheers,

Shun

 

[anhnha]

Thank you for your response. I didn't know that pinyin can be written using tone marks there.
Regarding the issue of dividing the definition part into multiple lines, I attempted to do so but encountered some difficulties. I may have misunderstood something, the definition remains as a single line of text.

你 <tab> nĭ <tab> 대명사 EAB1 你是谁? EAB1 nĭ shì shuí

Is it safe to use EAB1 to break lines, or is there a risk that this method may become obsolete in the future?

 

[Shun]

You're welcome.

You can use this character by copying and pasting, without the brackets: <> It may be that the character looks like a space on your device, but it will do its thing.

So EAB1 is the hex number for that special Unicode character, and <> is the actual character Pleco 3.2 uses for newlines. I guess future versions will still support EAB1 for newlines in a compatibility mode, but they will replace it by a more modern markup system for new flashcards. (IIRC, it will be a a simplified version of HTML)

 

[anhnha]

Great, the Unicode character works! Do you happen to know if there is a code for the TAB key, rather than using a tab space which can be difficult to notice and might be missed?

 

[Shun]

Wonderful! You could enable the display of invisible characters in your text editor (such as BBEdit or Geany), but perhaps the most comfortable way is to use a three-column table in Word or another word processor. Then, when the list is finished, you could copy it to a text editor, which should see tabs between the fields (or convert the table to text inside Word first). That way, you will be sure that there are always the right number of tabs.