Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com
Synonyms

documentation

American  
[dok-yuh-men-tey-shuhn, -muhn-] / ˌdɒk jə mɛnˈteɪ ʃən, -mən- /

noun

  • documentations
    plural
  1. the use of documentary evidence.

  2. a furnishing with documents, as to substantiate a claim or the data in a book or article.

  3. Computers. manuals, listings, diagrams, and other hard- or soft-copy written and graphic materials that describe the use, operation, maintenance, or design of software or hardware.

    The documentation for the driver program is displayed on the screen.


documentation British  
/ ˌdɒkjʊmɛnˈteɪʃən /

noun

  1. the act of supplying with or using documents or references

  2. the documents or references supplied

  3. the furnishing and use of documentary evidence, as in a court of law

  4. computing the written comments, graphical illustrations, flowcharts, manuals, etc, supplied with a program or software system

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

Inflected Forms

Nouns

Etymology

Origin of documentation

First recorded in 1745–55; document + -ation

Explanation

Your driver's license is documentation of your age, address, and that you have passed the tests required to drive a car. Documentation is certifiable proof, or a set of official documents. Your new computer probably came with a packet of documentation that shows you how to use it and explains what to do when it breaks. In this sense, documentation means the official documents of your computer. If you are the person preparing a packet of information about how to use a computer program to keep attendance at school, you are preparing the documentation of that process.

Keep Reading on Vocabulary.com

Vocabulary lists containing documentation

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.

See Examples For:

"There is an overwhelming amount of firsthand documentation indicating that dam-building compounds the glacial melt and permafrost melt already underway from warming," Tikos added.

From Barron's Sep. 1, 2026

The court determined that my friend failed to reschedule a hearing, although he says he has documentation showing that he attempted to do so.

From MarketWatch Aug. 26, 2026

He said he had submitted his documentation to Guinness but had to wait to see if the organisation would officially recognise his achievements.

From BBC Aug. 23, 2026

But social scenes have never been considered a heady topic worthy of deeply reflective documentation.

From Los Angeles Times Aug. 11, 2026

And because the Abnegation don’t take photographs, the only documentation I have of how they looked.

From "Insurgent" by Veronica Roth

To avoid paying the premium that the law requires, Chipotle created false documentations of “waivers,” the investigation found.

From Washington Post Aug. 10, 2022

What might seem like insider jokes about art, branding and “lifestyles” ultimately resulted in cringe-worthy documentations of downtown New York’s transformation into a retail mecca, with artists pushed out by gentrification.

From New York Times Dec. 2, 2020

“You have to produce some documentations supporting your contention.”

From US News May 18, 2016

Douglas did not respond to repeated interview requests from The Associated Press, but campaign spokeswoman Sandra Dowling said Friday that “there are plenty of documentations to completely validate Diane Douglas’ position on Common Core.”

From Washington Times Oct. 31, 2014

If we get enough, we will re-release this file, with the lengthy documentations at the end of the file contained herein.

From The Jargon File, Version 2.9.10, 01 Jul 1992 by Eric S. Raymond

Vocabulary.com logo
by dictionary.com

Dictionary.com's Learning Companion

Go beyond just looking up words.
Remember them forever with VocabTrainer.

Start training