print

1 of 3

noun

1
a
: a mark made by pressure : impression
b
: something impressed with a print or formed in a mold
2
a
: printed state or form
b
: the printing industry
3
b
prints plural : printed publications
4
: printed letters : type
5
a(1)
: a copy made by printing
(2)
: a reproduction of an original work of art (such as a painting) made by a photomechanical process
(3)
: an original work of art (such as a woodcut, etching, or lithograph) intended for graphic reproduction and produced by or under the supervision of the artist who designed it
b
: cloth with a pattern or figured design applied by printing
also : an article of such cloth
c
: a photographic or motion-picture copy
especially : one made from a negative

print

2 of 3

verb

printed; printing; prints

transitive verb

1
a
: to impress something in or on
b
: to stamp (something, such as a mark) in or on something
2
a
: to make a copy of by impressing paper against an inked printing surface
b(1)
: to impress (something, such as wallpaper) with a design or pattern
(2)
: to impress (a pattern or design) on something
c
: to publish in print
d
: print out
also : to display on a surface (such as a computer screen) for viewing
3
: to write in letters shaped like those of ordinary roman text type
4
: to make (a positive picture) on a sensitized photographic surface from a negative or a positive

intransitive verb

1
a
: to work as a printer
b
: to produce printed matter
2
: to produce something in printed form
3
: to write or hand-letter in imitation of unjoined printed characters

print

3 of 3

adjective

: of, relating to, or writing for printed publications
print journalists
Phrases
in print
: procurable from the publisher
out of print
: not procurable from the publisher

Examples of print in a Sentence

Noun What is the print size of your book? an exhibit of 16th-century German prints Verb We printed 50 invitations before we ran out of ink. The new machine prints 30 pages per minute. Your tickets are being printed now. a slogan printed on a bumper sticker Your tickets are printing now. This printer allows you to print on both sides of a sheet of paper. They printed 10,000 copies of the book's new edition. I'm surprised they printed that cartoon in the paper. Her picture was printed in a magazine last month. See More
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
Numbered-and-signed prints and posters go for as little as $50; originals start at $400. Chris Schalkx, Condé Nast Traveler, 27 Nov. 2023 Between the four chic colors and color-block print options, the striking fleece will draw second (and third) glances. Madison Yauger, Peoplemag, 26 Nov. 2023 Grab soft, stretchy, and lightweight satin pajamas in the iconic pink stripe or cozy flannels in leopard print. Jenifer Calle, Glamour, 24 Nov. 2023 Wemlinger suggests bringing both materials into a single item, such as mixing moire with a large-scale peony print on a chair’s seat and back upholstery, or mingling materials in one small area of a room. Kristina McGuirk, Better Homes & Gardens, 22 Nov. 2023 By re-introducing the glories of newspapers to a new generation, the Columbia graduate student is doing her best to make print media hot again. Mary McNamara, Los Angeles Times, 22 Nov. 2023 The pages are double sided with prints on both sides, and easy to use for greeting cards, party decor, and more. Amanda Ogle, Southern Living, 22 Nov. 2023 After a layer has been deposited and cured, the scanner creates a depth map of the print surface, which is then compared against the 3D model to work out how to adjust the rate of deposition from the inkjet units to even out any irregularities. IEEE Spectrum, 15 Nov. 2023 When Alcaraz beat Djokovic at Wimbledon some four months ago, there was a new king-in-town vibe that permeated the airwaves and print columns. Tim Ellis, Forbes, 13 Nov. 2023
Verb
Stella McCartney tiger printed peacoat A wild print will add some excitement into the mix of dark winter clothes. Porter Simmons, Vogue, 27 Nov. 2023 The crisis has roots in years of the government’s economic mismanagement, including overspending, big deficits, protectionist trade policies, complicated currency controls, $44 billion in international debt and an overreliance on printing more pesos to pay the government’s bills. Lucía Cholakian Herrera, New York Times, 24 Nov. 2023 The original recipe, as printed below, calls for 1 1/2 cups of oil. Pam Lolley, Southern Living, 22 Nov. 2023 Woodcut in twelve panels, printed from thirty sheets of plywood on Parsons ANW paper; eight feet high by forty-eight feet wide. Kerry James Marshall, The New Yorker, 20 Nov. 2023 In the snap, Nicola posed in an oversized white T-shirt with Victoria's image on the front and the words, ‘POSH’ printed in big block letters. Escher Walcott, Peoplemag, 20 Nov. 2023 Their collaboration features the Ash bolero top, the Adara skirt, a Dawn bikini top in black and printed colorways, and the Mercy Scorpion bikini bottom in black and also printed. Essence, 20 Nov. 2023 Some of the artworks, printed on paper, slate or aluminum, echo Cameron’s experimental short films, a selection of which are available on YouTube. Mark Jenkins, Washington Post, 17 Nov. 2023 The stamp was printed all the way back in 1918, to commemorate the beginning of regular airmail service, The Washington Post noted. Tori Latham, Robb Report, 15 Nov. 2023
Adjective
In new research reported in a Feb. 1 paper published on the arXiv pre-print server, the team used data from NASA's inoperative Kepler spacecraft, its secondary mission K2 and the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) to identify K2-415b. Julia Musto, Fox News, 15 Feb. 2023 Working in the metaverse for an extended period of time can lead to higher anxiety, a perception of higher workloads, and even adverse physical effects for some employees, tech outlet New Scientist reported, citing a recent study published on pre-print database arXiv on June 8. Tristan Bove, Fortune, 21 June 2022 Experts got partial answers from a pre-print publication posted online in August by a separate research team. Riley Black, Discover Magazine, 11 Dec. 2020 Many who are hospitalized could become long haulers, study suggests About three-quarters of people hospitalized could become long haulers, according to a paper uploaded to the pre-print server medRxiv on August 14 without having yet been vetted by outside experts or accepted for publication. Steve Almasy, CNN, 6 Oct. 2020 The results were published online on arXiv, the pre-print server. Darren Orf, Popular Mechanics, 17 Feb. 2023 In March, researchers at the UK's Office of National Statistics posted a study on a pre-print server that was extremely similar. Beth Mole, Ars Technica, 11 Oct. 2022 This revelation comes from a study posted to the pre-print server bioRxiv earlier this month. Marisa Sloan, Discover Magazine, 22 Nov. 2021 The most common are neurological, such as brain-fog and headache, according to a pre-print study by King's College London. Luke Taylor, Discover Magazine, 29 Nov. 2022 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'print.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English prente, from Anglo-French, from preint, prient, past participle of priendre to press, from Latin premere — more at press

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb

14th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1a

Adjective

1922, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of print was in the 14th century

Dictionary Entries Near print

Cite this Entry

“Print.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/print. Accessed 6 Dec. 2023.

Kids Definition

print

1 of 2 noun
1
a
: a mark made by pressure
b
: something that has been stamped with an impression or formed in a mold
a print of butter
2
a
: printed state or form
put a manuscript into print
b
: printed matter
c
: printed letters
3
: a picture, copy, or design made by printing (as from an engraving or a photographic negative)
4
a
: cloth with a printed pattern
b
: an article of such cloth

print

2 of 2 verb
1
: to put or stamp something in or on
2
a
: to make a copy of by pressing paper against an inked surface (as type or an engraving)
b
: to stamp with a design by pressure
print wallpaper
c
: to publish in printed form
print a newspaper
d
: to write or cause to be written on a surface (as a computer display screen) for viewing
the computer will print the message at the top of the screen
e
3
: to write in separate letters like those made by a typewriter
4
: to make a picture from a photographic negative

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