archive

1 of 2

noun

ar·​chive ˈär-ˌkīv 

1

: a place in which public records or historical materials (such as documents) are preserved

an archive of historical manuscripts

a film archive

also : the material preserved

—often used in plural

reading through the archives

2

: a repository or collection especially of information

archive

2 of 2

verb

archived; archiving

transitive verb

: to file or collect in or as if in an archive

archive documents

archived tissue samples

Synonyms of archive

Noun

• library

Examples of archive in a Sentence

Verb

The organization was devoted to cataloging and archiving printed materials on the labor movement.

She archived her e-mail messages in a folder on her hard drive.

a collection of archived articles

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

In May, as part of a larger executive reorganization, Matt Severson was named executive vice president of academy collection and preservation, overseeing all archival, preservation, registration, conservation and cataloging work of the library, archive and Academy Museum. —Malia Mendez, Los Angeles Times, 24 Jan. 2026

Here are five pie recipes, from chocolate peanut butter pie to Key lime pie, from the Courier Journal's extensive recipe archive. —Kathryn Gregory, Louisville Courier Journal, 23 Jan. 2026

Verb

Folio Photonics is a company which has developed a multilayer optical recording system for archiving applications which can result in photothermal recording similar to Blu-ray optical discs with either reflective or fluorescent recording technologies. —Thomas Coughlin, Forbes.com, 21 Jan. 2026

Advertisement One group has pre-emptively archived at least 360 environmental datasets—with some 67 others in the works. —Kyla Mandel, Time, 16 Jan. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Noun and Verb

French & Latin; French, from Latin archivum, from Greek archeion government house (in plural, official documents), from archē rule, government — more at arch-

First Known Use

Noun

1603, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1831, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for archive

• alive
• arrive
• beehive
• connive
• contrive
• deprive
• derive
• revive
• survive
• dive
• drive
• five

Kids Definition

archive

1 of 2 noun

ar·​chive ˈär-ˌkīv 

1

: a place in which public records or historical documents are preserved

also : the material preserved

—usually used in plural

2

: a collection of information

archive

2 of 2 verb

archived; archiving

: to file or collect in or as if in an archive

was archiving documents