Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!yale!cmcl2!adm!news
From: dichter@soleil.sps.mot.com (Carl Dichter)
Newsgroups: comp.unix.internals
Subject: re: Is it "grep' (william crosby)
Message-ID: <25414@adm.brl.mil>
Date: 7 Jan 91 18:34:03 GMT
Sender: news@adm.brl.mil
Lines: 26

On bsd UNIX the spelling lists are usally at /usr/dict/words.

They can be searched with grep, like this:
	grep -i gry /usr/dict/words

Or, if you know how a word starts you can use "look", which searches
a sorted list and if not given a list to search, defaults to the
spelling list also. If we want to find words that started with "gry",
we would use:
	look gry

Another way to find words ending with "gry", and not worry about
where the list is, would be to use grep and look together. For
example:
	look . | grep -i "gry$"

The spelling lists on System 5 UNIX are hashed, and therefore 
impossible to search with a partial word. The speller does it by pairing
the word with common beginnings and endings.

Hope this helps.

Carl R. Dichter 
Staff Software Engineer/Scientist
Motorola ASIC Division
Email: dichter@soleil.sps.mot.com