duodecimo

American  

[doo-uh-des-uh-moh, dyoo-] / ˌdu əˈdɛs əˌmoʊ, ˌdyu- /

noun

duodecimos plural

1. Also called twelvemo.  a book size of about 5 × 7½ inches (13 × 19 centimeters), determined by printing on sheets folded to form 12 leaves or 24 pages. 12 mo, 12°

2. a book of this size.

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adjective

1. in duodecimo; twelvemo.

duodecimo British  

/ ˌdjuːəʊˈdɛsɪˌməʊ /

noun

1. Also called: twelvemo.  Often written: 12mo.   12°.  a book size resulting from folding a sheet of paper into twelve leaves

2. a book of this size

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Etymology

Origin of duodecimo

First recorded in 1650–60; short for Latin in duodecimō “in twelfth”

Example Sentences

The following books are each issued in one large, duodecimo volume, in paper cover, at $1.50 each, or each one is bound in cloth, at $1.75 each.

From Wives and Widows; or The Broken Life by Stephens, Ann S. (Ann Sophia)

She put her hand in with a thrill of joy at her audacity, and brought out an old duodecimo of battered calf-skin.

From The Open Question a tale of two temperaments by Robins, Elizabeth

The whole of the novels and stories of Mrs. Caroline Lee Hentz will be issued complete in twelve large duodecimo volumes.

From Wives and Widows; or The Broken Life by Stephens, Ann S. (Ann Sophia)

When he paid his next visit, it so happened that one of these duodecimo disputants lay upon the table.

From Willing to Die by Le Fanu, Joseph Sheridan

Inside the second enclosure was a small, duodecimo volume, in a tattered binding.

From Between the Dark and the Daylight by Marsh, Richard