verbatim

American  

[ver-bey-tim] / vərˈbeɪ tɪm /

adverb

1. in exactly the same words; word for word.

   to repeat something verbatim.

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adjective

1. corresponding word for word to the original source or text.

   a verbatim record of the proceedings.

2. skilled at recording or noting down speeches, proceedings, etc., with word-for-word accuracy.

   a verbatim stenographer.

verbatim British  

/ vɜːˈbeɪtɪm /

adverb

1. using exactly the same words; word for word

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Etymology

Origin of verbatim

First recorded in 1475–85; from Medieval Latin verbātim, from verb(um) “word” + -ātim, adverb suffix

Explanation

Repeat something you've read or heard precisely word-for-word, and you have just quoted it verbatim. That's great if what you deliver verbatim is the directions on how to defuse a bomb, but not a good idea if you're cheating on a test and copying someone's answer verbatim. As a word, verbatim is powerful for its precision. When you can say that you are repeating someone's words verbatim, it means every single word is exactly what was said. If you write something down verbatim, you can rely on it being a duplicate of the original document, recreated. Repeating words verbatim in your own writing can be tricky business. Without attributing the original author, verbatim can be the damning evidence of plagiarism.

Example Sentences

She also started an interview podcast, "Tatum, Verbatim," last year; she's currently looking for a new producer.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 24, 2018

Verbatim theater takes cues from Dennis Potter’s “Pennies from Heaven,” a musical about ordinary people that treated its characters with romance and dignity.

From Washington Post • Sep. 15, 2016

It's three times quicker to type out shorthand notes than to listen back to audio recordings, says Mary Sorene, secretary of the British Institute of Verbatim Reporters.

From BBC • Jan. 15, 2016

Verbatim theatre was, they thought, a known genre, at its worst a touch hectoring and solemn, and overly dependent on direct address.

From The Guardian • Apr. 16, 2010

Verbatim Reporting is, in a sense, a mere mechanical operation.

From The Great Doctrines of the Bible by Evans, William