document

American  

[dok-yuh-muhnt, dok-yuh-ment] / ˈdɒk yə mənt, ˈdɒk yəˌmɛnt /

noun

1. a written or printed paper furnishing information or evidence, as a passport, deed, bill of sale, or bill of lading; a legal or official paper.

   You'll need documents from your employers and your bank to prepare your income tax return.

2. any written item, as a book, article, or letter, especially of a factual or informative nature.

   The leaked document proves that the management team knew about the safety issues before the product launch.

3. Digital Technology. a computer data file, especially one with formatted text.

   Luckily, I saved my document right before the power went out.

4. Archaic. evidence; proof.

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verb (used with object)

1. to furnish with documents.

2. to furnish with references, citations, etc., in support of statements made.

   a carefully documented biography.

   Synonyms:

   validate, substantiate, verify, corroborate

3. to support by documentary evidence.

   to document a case.

4. Nautical. to provide (a vessel) with a certificate giving particulars concerning nationality, ownership, tonnage, dimensions, etc.

5. Obsolete. to instruct.

document British  

noun

1. a piece of paper, booklet, etc, providing information, esp of an official or legal nature

2. a piece of text or text and graphics stored in a computer as a file for manipulation by document processing software

3. archaic evidence; proof

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verb

1. to record or report in detail, as in the press, on television, etc

   the trial was well documented by the media

2. to support (statements in a book) with citations, references, etc

3. to support (a claim, etc) with evidence or proof

4. to furnish (a vessel) with official documents specifying its ownership, registration, weight, dimensions, and function

Other Word Forms

• documentable adjective
• documenter noun
• nondocumented adjective
• redocument verb (used with object)
• well-documented adjective

Etymology

Origin of document

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Latin documentum “example (as precedent, warning, etc.),” from doc(ēre) “to teach” + -u- (variant of -i- -i- before labials) + -mentum -ment

Example Sentences

The government reconsidered the case after a new document came to light, but has again concluded no compensation should be paid.

From BBC

Williams' name appeared on a document published by the the International Tennis Integrity Agency on 6 October.

From BBC

He said: "They've shown no empathy towards us as a family, they've just produced document after document in trying to justify their maintenance records and abiding by the procedures in place."

From BBC

A US immigration judge on Wednesday granted asylum to a Chinese man who fled his country after documenting sites of alleged human rights abuses against Uyghurs, his mother and lawyer told AFP.

From Barron's

The Harvard University economist and his co-authors have documented how poor kids in some neighborhoods can grow up to earn far more than others who grow up just blocks away.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• archive
• certificate
• diary
• evidence
• form
• paper
• record
• report
• script
• testimony