scriptorium

[ skrip-tawr-ee-uhm, -tohr- ]

/ skrɪpˈtɔr i əm, -ˈtoʊr- /

Save This Word!

noun, plural scrip·to·ri·ums, scrip·to·ri·a

[skrip-tawr-ee-uh, -tohr-]. /skrɪpˈtɔr i ə, -ˈtoʊr-/.

a room, as in a monastery, library, or other institution, where manuscripts are stored, read, or copied.

QUIZ

QUIZ YOURSELF ON "WAS" VS. "WERE"!

Were you ready for a quiz on this topic? Well, here it is! See how well you can differentiate between the uses of "was" vs. "were" in this quiz.

Question 1 of 7

“Was” is used for the indicative past tense of “to be,” and “were” is only used for the subjunctive past tense.

true

false

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of scriptorium

1765–75; <Medieval Latin scrīptōrium;see script, -tory²

Words nearby scriptorium

script doctor, scripter, script girl, scripting language, script kiddie, scriptorium, script reader, scriptural, Scripture, scriptwriter, scrive board

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use scriptorium in a sentence

Every volume had to be returned before the lights were lit, and work ceased in the scriptorium the instant the daylight failed.
Robert Annys: Poor Priest|Annie Nathan Meyer
It lay in a conspicuous place in the scriptorium, and no one but the chronicler was permitted to make entries in it.
Robert Annys: Poor Priest|Annie Nathan Meyer
At last he turned his back resolutely upon the picture of loveliness and entered the scriptorium.
Robert Annys: Poor Priest|Annie Nathan Meyer
Every considerable monastery had a room, called Scriptorium, where this work was performed.
View of the State of Europe during the Middle Ages, Vol. 3 (of 3)|Henry Hallam

Day after day he would trudge from his mother's house, and she was a widow, up to the monks' Scriptorium.
More Celtic Fairy Tales|Various

British Dictionary definitions for scriptorium

scriptorium

/ (skrɪpˈtɔːrɪəm) /

noun plural -riums or -ria (-rɪə)

a room, esp in a monastery, set apart for the writing or copying of manuscripts

Word Origin for scriptorium

from Medieval Latin

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012