diary

[dahy-uh-ree]

noun

plural

diaries 

1. a daily record, usually private, especially of the writer's own experiences, observations, feelings, attitudes, etc.

   Synonyms: chronicle, log, daybook, journal

2. a book for keeping such a record.

   Synonyms: chronicle, log, daybook, journal

3. a book or pad containing pages marked and arranged in calendar order, in which to note appointments and the like.

diary

/ ˈdaɪərɪ /

noun

1. a personal record of daily events, appointments, observations, etc

2. a book for keeping such a record

Word History and Origins

Origin of diary¹

1575–85; < Latin diārium daily allowance, journal, equivalent to di ( ēs ) day + -ārium -ary

Word History and Origins

Origin of diary¹

C16: from Latin diārium daily allocation of food or money, journal, from diēs day

Example Sentences

His lawyer, Abbe Lowell, said the charges stemmed from diary entries kept by Bolton over his 45-year career in public service.

Read more on BBC

He called her every day and kept a diary, sketching rap lyrics and poems in blue ballpoint pen.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

“A totalitarian state is in effect a theocracy,” Orwell wrote in his diary while he was working on the book.

Read more on Salon

He has consulted weather reports, diaries, architectural records and every newspaper imaginable to create a vivid and historically accurate account of the boom, crash and aftermath.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Rip up your 2025 diary and take the pages from the first six months and burn them in your fireplace.

Read more on MarketWatch

Related Words

• account 
• journal 
• log 
• notebook