scrivener

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of scrivener Zach Thomas Woods infuses zany comic energy into Edgar, a young Scottish lawyer and scrivener (a copier of documents), sternly religious but desperately horny and infatuated with Ruth. Jim Higgins, Journal Sentinel, 29 Apr. 2023 The name of the candidate omitted in the Voter Guide is highlighted in red to emphasize the scrivener’s error. chicagotribune.com, 25 Mar. 2021 Her narrator’s final gesture, transforming herself into a piece of half-living art, echoes the odd and combative passivity of Herman Melville’s Bartleby, a scrivener who suddenly, inexplicably, refuses to perform his duties. Alexandra Kleeman, Vanities, 2 July 2018 But the scrivener simply repeated the same five words, with no explanation for his conduct. The Economist, 26 May 2018 In the short story by Herman Melville from which our new column takes its name, Bartleby was a scrivener—a dying art, nowadays. The Economist, 26 May 2018 In 1727, when Benjamin Franklin was twenty-one, he and a few friends—among them a scrivener, a joiner, and two cobblers—formed a conversation club called the Junto. Rachel Aviv, The New Yorker, 1 Dec. 2014 Almost always, Shakespeare’s plays become mirrors when held up to the moments in which they are produced; Ralph Crane the scrivener was only the first among many annotators. Cynthia Zarin, The New Yorker, 15 Feb. 2017 The difference between a merchant’s handwriting and a scrivener’s is clear enough, the one scrawled and bold, the other neat and careful. Tim Parks, New York Times, 11 May 2016
Recent Examples of Synonyms for scrivener
Noun
  • The ranch, long the property of the University of New Mexico, was now run as a writers’ retreat, with a single writer of reputation occupying the privileged position of writer-in-residence.
    Vivian Gornick, New Yorker, 16 Aug. 2025
  • During a recent piece in which ESPN writers ranked NFL teams based on their future outlooks, Walder offered an incredibly bold prediction on Nix, projecting that the former first-round pick will lose his job soon.
    Matthew Schmidt, MSNBC Newsweek, 16 Aug. 2025
Noun
  • Next up: Gough and Millar are already in the writers’ room with five other scribes on Season 3.
    Anne Thompson, IndieWire, 5 Aug. 2025
  • Singer — and by association, Gray — were recruited in the middle of the writing process, with two scribes penning drafts before and after the American Hustle writer submitted his own.
    Winston Cho, HollywoodReporter, 31 July 2025
Noun
  • Why should authors and writers like me be expected to work for free?
    Tim Carter, Hartford Courant, 16 Aug. 2025
  • This all while both Effy and Preston are trying to prove the truth about a famed author’s work amid an ongoing war between their two home countries.
    Jennifer Maas, Variety, 16 Aug. 2025
Noun
  • Groff, the three-time National Book Award finalist and best-selling author, wrote the libretto with Doraiswamy and served as a kind of amanuensis to the production.
    Laura van Straaten, New York Times, 11 July 2025
  • The journalist’s tone was snarky, but there were some direct quotes from my father’s amanuenses.
    Sage Mehta, The New Yorker, 7 Oct. 2024

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Scrivener.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/scrivener. Accessed 22 Aug. 2025.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!