as in hardcovers
a published work that has a thick paper cover
The store sells both paperbacks and hardcovers.
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Recent Examples of paperbacks
When Catalina goes into the kitchen to refill her calabash, Frances grabs the box of Thompson paperbacks and makes a run for Ray at the restaurant.
—
Amanda Whiting, Vulture, 1 Oct. 2025
There are bookshelves teeming with dog-eared paperbacks, imposing hardbacks, critical anthologies, story collections, art books; my writer is also a reader, and a voracious one at that.
—Katie Da Cunha Lewin
september 26, Literary Hub, 26 Sep. 2025
The bar is stocked with wine and coffee, the walls are lined with books and the air is filled with the aroma of fresh paperbacks.
—Alyssa Goldberg, USA Today, 27 Aug. 2025
Honey is a recognizable archetype, the sort of pulp-fiction staple honed over decades of vintage publications, dog-eared paperbacks and B-movie double features.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 20 Aug. 2025
Amanda Whiting, Vulture, 1 Oct. 2025
There are bookshelves teeming with dog-eared paperbacks, imposing hardbacks, critical anthologies, story collections, art books; my writer is also a reader, and a voracious one at that.
—Katie Da Cunha Lewin
september 26, Literary Hub, 26 Sep. 2025
The bar is stocked with wine and coffee, the walls are lined with books and the air is filled with the aroma of fresh paperbacks.
—Alyssa Goldberg, USA Today, 27 Aug. 2025
Honey is a recognizable archetype, the sort of pulp-fiction staple honed over decades of vintage publications, dog-eared paperbacks and B-movie double features.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 20 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for paperbacks
books
Noun
-
Forgeries, hoaxes, and other types of literary fakery have preoccupied Havens, a rare books and manuscripts curator at the university’s Stern Center for the History of the Book, for many years now.—
JSTOR Daily,
JSTOR Daily,
16 Oct. 2025
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What books are on your night stand?—
New York Times,
New York Times,
16 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Paperbacks.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/paperbacks. Accessed 22 Oct. 2025.
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