manuscript

[man-yuh-skript]

noun

1. the original text of an author's work, handwritten or now usually typed, that is submitted to a publisher.

2. any text not printed.

3. a book or document written before the invention of printing.

4. writing, as distinguished from print.

adjective

1. handwritten or typed, not professionally printed.

manuscript

/ ˈmænjʊˌskrɪpt /

noun

1. a book or other document written by hand

2. the original handwritten or typed version of a book, article, etc, as submitted by an author for publication

3. 1. handwriting, as opposed to printing

   2. ( as modifier )

      a manuscript document

Other Word Forms

• manuscriptal adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of manuscript¹

1590–1600; < Medieval Latin manūscrīptus written by hand, equivalent to Latin manū by hand (ablative of manus ) + scrīptus written; script

Word History and Origins

Origin of manuscript¹

C16: from Medieval Latin manūscriptus, from Latin manus hand + scribere to write

Example Sentences

Abstracts presented at the American Heart Association's scientific meetings are not peer-reviewed, and the findings are considered preliminary until published as a full manuscript in a peer-reviewed scientific journal.

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Cooper had left the original manuscript on a London bus, and it had taken her a decade to rewrite it - but it became an international bestseller.

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The novel kicks off with the theft of a book manuscript from a publishing house — a book, we learn, that may contain the secrets to an entirely new way of looking at the world.

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The Booker-winning novelist has previously expressed his opposition to "sensitivity readers", the practice of hiring someone to read a manuscript before its publication in order to point out things that might be offensive to readers.

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Campaigners have also approached King Charles as patron of the St Catherine Foundation, which raises funds to help conserve and study the monastery's heritage with its collection of valuable ancient Christian manuscripts.

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Related Words

• article 
• document 
• text