notary
Americannoun
noun
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a notary public
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(formerly) a clerk licensed to prepare legal documents
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archaic a clerk or secretary
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of notary
First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English, from Latin notārius “clerk,” from not(āre) “to mark” ( see note) + -ārius -ary
Explanation
A notary is someone with the legal power to witness signatures, verify documents, and take depositions. A notary — also known as a notary public — is a person who has been licensed by a state to perform a few legal functions. The most common one is to witness signatures. For many types of paperwork, you need a notary to be present as you sign, which makes the paperwork official. Notaries also have the power to verify various types of documents and are allowed to take depositions (statements) in some legal situations.
Vocabulary lists containing notary
"Maus II: And Here My Troubles Began" by Art Spiegelman
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The Mona Lisa Vanishes
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The Voyage of the Frog
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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.
“A few years ago, I had a falling out with a close family member over climate change,” Aziz Bekishov, who owns a Mobile Notary store in Washington, DC, told Salon.
From Salon • Feb. 24, 2025
After hearing about the bused migrants, Notary Lesly Chavez said she decided to donate clothes she’d collected for other causes to the new arrivals.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 18, 2023
Notary Ceramics Cone Glass: Create a mood with these recycled-glass cone glasses from the Portland-based shop.
From Seattle Times • Nov. 12, 2021
Notary offices also registered 1,325,394 live births in the first six months of the year, the lowest for any January-June period since the data series began in 2003, Arpen-Brasil said.
From Reuters • Jul. 8, 2021
He began life as a Notary, but his passion for Botany and Entomology ultimately led to his taking to Science as a profession.
From Charles Darwin: His Life in an Autobiographical Chapter, and in a Selected Series of His Published Letters by Darwin, Charles
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.
