plagiarism

[pley-juh-riz-uhm, -jee-uh-riz-]

noun

1. an act or instance of using or closely imitating the language and thoughts of another author without authorization and the representation of that author's work as one's own, as by not crediting the original author.

   It is said that he plagiarized Thoreau's plagiarism of a line written by Montaigne.

   Synonyms: cribbing, borrowing, theft, piracy, infringement, appropriation

2. a piece of writing or other work reflecting such unauthorized use or imitation.

   “These two manuscripts are clearly plagiarisms,” the editor said, tossing them angrily on the floor.

plagiarism

/ ˈpleɪdʒəˌrɪzəm /

noun

1. the act of plagiarizing

2. something plagiarized

plagiarism

1. Literary theft. Plagiarism occurs when a writer duplicates another writer's language or ideas and then calls the work his or her own. Copyright laws protect writers' words as their legal property. To avoid the charge of plagiarism, writers take care to credit those from whom they borrow and quote.

Similar theft in music or other arts is also called plagiarism.

Other Word Forms

• plagiarist noun
• plagiaristic adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of plagiarism¹

First recorded in 1615–25; plagiar(y) + -ism

Example Sentences

On hold: Apple has yanked the French-language thriller “The Hunt,” which was scheduled to premiere Dec. 3, amid allegations of plagiarism.

Read more on MarketWatch

His publisher tells him that another author is suing him for plagiarism.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Even AI-generated content can be vulnerable to old-fashioned plagiarism -- Chen is involved in a legal battle with a social media account he alleges stole elements from his series' trailer.

Read more on Barron's

By the spring of 2021, Buster had been kicked out of law school, reportedly for low grades and plagiarism.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

There’s an accusation of plagiarism that ought to be extremely easy to prove but is instead treated as something that can only be made to stick if there is proper political support.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• falsification www.thesaurus.com
• infringement 
• piracy