transcribe
Americanverb (used with object)
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to make a written copy, especially a typewritten copy, of (dictated material, notes taken during a lecture, or other spoken material).
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to make an exact copy of (a document, text, etc.).
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to write out in another language or alphabet; translate or transliterate.
to transcribe Chinese into English characters.
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Phonetics. to represent (speech sounds) in written phonetic or phonemic symbols.
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Radio. to make a recording of (a program, announcement, etc.) for broadcasting.
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Music. to arrange (a composition) for a medium other than that for which it was originally written.
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Genetics. to effect genetic transcription of (a DNA molecule template).
verb
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to write, type, or print out fully from speech, notes, etc
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to make a phonetic transcription of
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to transliterate or translate
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to make an electrical recording of (a programme or speech) for a later broadcast
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music to rewrite (a piece of music) for an instrument or medium other than that originally intended; arrange
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computing
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to transfer (information) from one storage device, such as punched cards, to another, such as magnetic tape
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to transfer (information) from a computer to an external storage device
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(usually passive) biochem to convert the genetic information in (a strand of DNA) into a strand of RNA, esp messenger RNA See also genetic code translate
Other Word Forms
- mistranscribe verb (used with object)
- nontranscribing adjective
- pretranscribe verb (used with object)
- retranscribe verb (used with object)
- transcribable adjective
- transcriber noun
- untranscribed adjective
Etymology
Origin of transcribe
First recorded in 1545–55; from Latin trānscrībere “to copy off,” literally, “to write across,” from trāns- trans- + scrībere “to write” ( scribe 1 )
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
“If the system can’t transcribe you accurately, you get a zero on that question.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 18, 2026
For around 15 years, the researcher has worked with students on a project to transcribe music broadcast by television and radio or on vinyl.
From Barron's • Feb. 18, 2026
The data will be open access, allowing developers to build tools that translate, transcribe and respond in African languages.
From BBC • Sep. 3, 2025
It’s not my job to translate for Western readers — but to transcribe my ancestors’ voices.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 16, 2025
I would have pleaded illness, but I knew that Falconer would brook no excuse short of my writing hand being lopped off—and even then he would probably insist that I transcribe left-handed.
From "The Shakespeare Stealer" by Gary L. Blackwood
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
