bibliographer
AmericanEtymology
Origin of bibliographer
1650–60; < Greek bibliográph ( os ) book-writer ( see biblio-, -graph) + -er 1
Explanation
If you’ve decided to read everything Shakespeare ever wrote, or are looking for the best books on American basketball for a research paper, you’ll appreciate that some bibliographer somewhere has probably made a list suitable for each of those two projects. A professional bibliographer makes lists of published writings, including when and where they were published and sometimes giving notes on each one. The list, called a bibliography, might be all of a certain author's works, or all the most important works on a certain topic. The Greek roots of both words are biblion, "book," and graphos, "something drawn or written." Whenever you make a list of all the resources you consulted for an essay, you’re making a bibliography and acting as an amateur bibliographer yourself.
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.
Two of this volume’s other essays closely consider the value of association copies — that is, copies with a noteworthy provenance — and the principles that guide a bibliographer.
From Washington Post • Nov. 10, 2022
At one point, there was one “Five Roses” cookbook for every four Canadian households, said Ms. Driver, the bibliographer.
From New York Times • Jan. 12, 2018
Senchyne came across the manuscript in 2015, when he was looking through the papers of Henry Harrisse, a notable 19th-century lawyer and bibliographer who taught at UNC in the mid-1850s.
From Seattle Times • Oct. 6, 2017
Colin Stanley, Wilson's publisher and bibliographer, said the writer and philosopher never fully recovered from a stroke in 2011.
From BBC • Dec. 13, 2013
The bibliographer, who wishes to be master of the most curious and rare editions of his works, may go from Bayle to Clement, and from Clement to Vogt.
From Bibliomania; or Book-Madness A Bibliographical Romance by Dibdin, Thomas Frognall
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.
