documentary

American  

[dok-yuh-men-tuh-ree, -tree] / ˌdɒk yəˈmɛn tə ri, -tri /

adjective

1. Also documental pertaining to, consisting of, or derived from documents.

   a documentary history of France.

2. Movies, Television. based on or re-creating an actual event, era, life story, etc., that purports to be factually accurate and contains no fictional elements.

   a documentary life of Gandhi.

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noun

plural

documentaries

1. Movies, Television. a documentary film, radio or television program, etc.

documentary British  

/ ˌdɒkjʊˈmɛntərɪ, -trɪ /

adjective

1. Also: documental.  consisting of, derived from, or relating to documents

2. presenting factual material with little or no fictional additions

   the book gives a documentary account of the war

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noun

1. a factual film or television programme about an event, person, etc, presenting the facts with little or no fiction

Other Word Forms

• documentarily adverb
• nondocumental adjective
• nondocumentary adjective
• predocumentary adjective
• semidocumentary adjective
• undocumentary adjective

Etymology

Origin of documentary

First recorded in 1795–1805; document + -ary

Example Sentences

US media has been less enthusiastic in its reviews, with The Atlantic calling the documentary a "disgrace" and the Variety trade magazine describing it as a "shameless infomercial."

From Barron's

A new documentary co-produced by the first lady herself aims to answer that question.

From BBC

Sam said he spoke to a lot of young people while researching the documentary who were trying to use AI for support.

From BBC

Jones said she only realised Connah's Quay was featured in the documentary because of social media.

From BBC

In January, promotional posters for “Melania,” a documentary film about the first lady, were installed at bus stops across Los Angeles.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• broadcast
• feature
• film
• narrative