library

li·brary

noun \ˈlī-ˌbrer-ē, -ˌbre-rē; British usually & US sometimes -brər-ē; US sometimes -brē, ÷-ˌber-ē, -ˌbe-rē\

plural li·brar·ies

Definition of LIBRARY

1

a : a place in which literary, musical, artistic, or reference materials (as books, manuscripts, recordings, or films) are kept for use but not for sale

b : a collection of such materials

2

a : a collection resembling or suggesting a library

b : morgue 2

3

a : a series of related books issued by a publisher

b : a collection of publications on the same subject

4

: a collection of cloned DNA fragments that are maintained in a suitable cellular environment and that usually represent the genetic material of a particular organism or tissue

Usage Discussion of LIBRARY

While the pronunciation \ˈlī-ˌbrer-ē\ is the most frequent variant in the United States, the other variants are not uncommon. The contraction \ˈlī-brē\ and the dissimilated form \ˈlī-ˌber-ē\ result from the relative difficulty of repeating \r\ in the same syllable or successive syllables; our files contain citations for these variants from educated speakers, including college presidents and professors, as well as with somewhat greater frequency from less educated speakers.

Examples of LIBRARY

1. I borrowed the book from the school library.
2. He has an impressive library of jazz records.
3. a library of computer programs

Origin of LIBRARY

Middle English, from Anglo-French librarie, Medieval Latin librarium, from Latin, neuter of librarius of books, from libr-, liber inner bark, rind, book

First Known Use: 14th century

Related to LIBRARY

Synonyms

archive

Related Words

rental library (or lending library); bibliotheca; stacks

Near Antonyms

bric-a-brac, clutter, heap, jumble, litter, pile, ragbag

Rhymes with LIBRARY

baneberry, barberry, bayberry, bearberry, bilberry, blackberry, black cherry, blaeberry, blueberry, Bradbury, bunchberry, Burberry, canary, chokeberry, chokecherry, cloudberry, contrary, costmary, cowberry, cranberry, crowberry, deerberry, equerry, gooseberry, ground-cherry, hackberry, Hail Mary, inkberry, Juneberry, knobkerrie, mulberry, nondairy, pokeberry, primary, raspberry, rosemary, scalare, shadberry, snowberry, soapberry, strawberry, summary, sweet cherry, teaberry, tilbury, tooth fairy, twinberry, unwary, vagary, wheat berry, wolfberry, youngberry

li·brary

noun \ˈlī-ˌbrer-ē\   (Medical Dictionary)

plural ; li·brar·ies

Medical Definition of LIBRARY

: a collection of cloned DNA fragments that are maintained in a suitable cellular environment and that represent the genetic material of a particular organism or tissue <inserting segments from a library of human DNA into yeast cells—Science News>

library

noun    (Concise Encyclopedia)

Collection of information resources in print or in other forms that is organized and made accessible for reading or study. The word derives from the Latin liber (“book”). The origin of libraries lies in the keeping of written records, a practice that dates at least to the 3rd millennium BC in Babylonia. The first libraries as repositories of books were those of the Greek temples and those established in conjunction with the Greek schools of philosophy in the 4th century BC. Today's libraries frequently contain periodicals, microfilms, tapes, videos, compact discs, and other materials in addition to books. The growth of on-line communications networks has enabled library users to search electronically linked databases worldwide. See also library science.