textbook

American  

[tekst-book] / ˈtɛkstˌbʊk /

noun

1. a book used by students as a standard work for a particular branch of study.

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adjective

1. pertaining to, characteristic of, or seemingly suitable for inclusion in a textbook; typical; classic.

   a textbook case.

textbook British  

/ ˈtɛkstˌbʊk /

noun

1. 1. a book used as a standard source of information on a particular subject

   2. ( as modifier )

      a textbook example

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Other Word Forms

• textbookish
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of textbook

First recorded in 1720–30; text + book

Explanation

A textbook is an informational book that you use specifically for a class at school. Your biology textbook might be so heavy that you dread lugging it to class. Textbooks are manuals written for instruction in a subject, rather than books you might read for fun. Today many students read textbooks in electronic form, rather than as bound hardcovers. Starting around the 19th century (with easy access to printing and standardized education in many parts of the world), textbooks became a common educational tool. Earlier, a textbook was a name for "a book with wide spaces between the lines."

Example Sentences

They do something just as important: they show that the story of human origins was more crowded, more competitive, and more unpredictable than the familiar textbook version suggests.

From Science Daily • May 16, 2026

Another five publications followed, including a 2025 textbook on continued fractions published by Springer.

From Slate • May 2, 2026

Speaking to students at Harvard University, he laid out the textbook case for patience: Energy disruptions tend to be short-lived and monetary policy works too slowly to counteract them in real time.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 30, 2026

“I think, as you say, the textbook and what we’ve learnt from central banks through history is an oil-price shock is actually seen as more of a growth issue than an inflation issue,” he said.

From MarketWatch • Mar. 19, 2026

The illustration accompanying the late-thirteenth-century Theodoric of Freiberg’s study of the rainbow when it appeared in print in Trutfetter’s textbook of 1514.

From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton

Related Words

• workbook