word-for-word

1 of 2

adjective

ˈwərd-fər-ˈwərd 

: being in or following the exact words : verbatim

a word-for-word translation

word for word

2 of 2

adverb

: in the exact words : verbatim

Synonyms of word-for-word

Adverb

• directly
• accurately

Examples of word-for-word in a Sentence

Adverb

you don't have to record the professor's comments word for word in your notes

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

An exhibit shows 100 other situations in which OpenAI’s GPT was trained on and memorized articles from the Times, with word-for-word copying. — Winston Cho, HollywoodReporter, 18 Sep. 2026

Students mostly stuck to word-for-word renderings, but even in that limited way, wasn’t the exposure to how people think in other languages somehow world-opening? — Literary Hub, 8 Sep. 2026

Adverb

That evening, during the prime-time news on Channel 12, a military reporter named Nir Dvori relayed the story nearly word for word. — Ruth Margalit, New Yorker, 19 Sep. 2026

The names and phone numbers change, but much of the sales pitch remains almost word for word. — Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 18 Aug. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

Adjective

circa 1611, in the meaning defined above

Adverb

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for word-for-word

• amateur
• connoisseur
• kieselguhr
• monseigneur
• procureur
• retransfer
• saboteur
• silencer
• voyageur
• birr
• blur
• bur

Kids Definition

word-for-word

1 of 2 adjective

: being in or following the exact words : verbatim

a word-for-word translation

word for word

2 of 2 adverb

: in the exact words : verbatim

repeated the message word for word