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index card

American  

noun

index cards plural
  1. a card, often relatively small, as 3 × 5 inches (7.6 × 12.7 centimeters), used in noting or recording information and usually filed in an index.


Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

Etymology

Origin of index card

First recorded in 1925–30

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.

See Examples For:

When the NFL draft begins on Thursday night, Commissioner Roger Goodell will hardly need to glance at an index card to know that the Raiders intended to use the first overall pick on Mendoza.

From The Wall Street Journal Apr. 23, 2026

In an earlier iteration of our dating, I gave him a jade plant and a pink index card with instructions on how to care for it:

From Los Angeles Times Dec. 23, 2022

I’m more focused when taking a moment to jot something down, whether it’s making a to-do list and outline in my notebook or creating an up-to-the-minute morning routine on an index card.

From The Verge Aug. 3, 2022

Photographers snapped the president holding up the outward-facing index card during a brief press availability in the Roosevelt Room to kick off the meeting.

From Washington Times Jun. 24, 2022

Jessie folded the index card and put it in her lock box.

From "The Lemonade War" by Jacqueline Davies

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