microfilm

American  

[mahy-kruh-film] / ˈmaɪ krəˌfɪlm /

noun

1. a film bearing a miniature photographic copy of printed or other graphic matter, usually of a document, newspaper or book pages, etc., made for a library, archive, or the like.

2. a film, especially of motion-picture stock, on which microcopies are made.

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verb (used with object)

1. to make a microfilm of.

microfilm British  

/ ˈmaɪkrəʊˌfɪlm /

noun

1. a strip of film of standard width on which books, newspapers, documents, etc, can be recorded in miniaturized form

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verb

1. to photograph (a page, document, etc) on microfilm

microfilm Cultural  

1. A film on which miniature copies of documents are reproduced. Microfilm allows for very compact storage of books and documents.

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Other Word Forms

• microfilmer noun

Etymology

Origin of microfilm

First recorded in 1930–35; micro- + film

Explanation

Microfilm is a miniature photographic reproduction of a document. If you're looking for very old newspapers in the library, you'll probably find them stored on microfilm. Microfilm is exactly what it sounds like: small film. These tiny photographs have to be looked at through a special viewer that magnifies them, but because they're so small, many print documents can fit on one reel of film. Microfilm is a great way for libraries to store many documents in a small space. Even the advent of the internet hasn't made microfilm obsolete — it's still a great way to preserve documents.

Example Sentences

In the archives of Armagh's Cultural Heritage Centre is a microfilm copy of the Tyrone Courier from March 24 1976.

From BBC • Mar. 14, 2026

“The A.I. is not going to go and get microfilm, I can tell you that.”

From Slate • Nov. 3, 2025

Artist David Hartt designed the show to include prints, mural-size blow-ups, 35mm color slides, microfilm, video clips, magazines, newspapers, and specially commissioned artistic photo albums.

From The Wall Street Journal • Sep. 27, 2025

Traditional paint on canvas was often sidelined in favor of modern industrial materials such as poured resin, ground glass, lacquers and microfilm coatings.

From New York Times • Mar. 14, 2024

Elizabeth returned home on the train twice each month, her knitting bag stuffed with military documents, microfilm, and other secrets that she would pass along to Moscow.

From "Spies: The Secret Showdown Between America and Russia" by Marc Favreau

Related Words

• image
• likeness
• photo
• picture
• portrait
• print
• snapshot