I. ˈpāpə(r) noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle English papir, from Middle French papier, from Latin papyrus paper, papyrus, from Greek papyros papyrus
1.
a.
(1) : a felted sheet of usually vegetable but sometimes mineral or synthetic fibers laid down on a fine screen from a water suspension
(2) : paper in sheets 6/1000 inch or thinner — compare board
b. : a sheet or piece of paper
c. : a paper surface
the mind can never resemble a blank paper — J.H.Newman
put pen to paper
d. : something resembling true paper in form and use or in composition: as
(1) : papyrus
(2) : papier-mâché
2.
a. : a piece of paper containing a written or printed statement (as of identity, authority, or ownership) : document , instrument — usually used in plural whether applying to one or to more than one item
naturalization papers
officer's papers
pedigree papers
were both forced to flee the country, separately and without papers — Current Biography
this policy, including the endorsements and the attached papers — Mutual of Omaha
— compare ship's papers , working papers; first papers , second papers
b. : any piece of paper containing writing or print (as a letter or memorandum) — usually used in plural
family papers
the state papers of a president
c. : a literary composition especially of brief, occasional, or fragmentary nature — usually used in plural
his collected papers — not all previously printed — are too short to be called essays — Times Literary Supplement
3.
a. : a piece of paper shaped to serve as a receptacle or wrapper (as for tacks)
a paper of peppermints in her pocket — Flora Thompson
b. : a card or paper folder to which articles (as needles) are attached
the page he had marked with a paper of matches — Frederick Buechner
a paper of pins
4.
a. : newspaper
daily paper
his picture would be in the papers — Mary Austin
paper carrier
paper route
paper stand
b. : publication ; especially : one resembling a newspaper in format, content, or frequency of publication
church paper
school paper
trade paper
5.
a. : negotiable notes
assets of the bank were shot through with bad paper — W.A.White
real-estate portfolios were choked with foreclosed paper — Fortune
long-term paper
short-term paper
— compare commercial paper
b. : paper money
with a pocketful of paper to grab rich mineral and timber lands — American Guide Series: Minnesota
6. : wallpaper
pictorial papers printed from wood blocks were imported — H.S.Morrison
7. : a piece of written schoolwork:
a. : a written examination — used of either the examiner's questions or the student's answers
candidates may take … either (1) a paper in Latin; or (2) a paper in Greek — Edinburgh University Cal.
b. : a written assignment done either as an exercise in composition or as a report on an assigned topic
freshman English is a hard course to teach because of the many papers coming in weekly
our history paper is due next week
term paper
— compare essay , thesis
8.
a. : a composition of informational nature (as on a scientific or historical topic) for reading before a group
do a paper for our reading circle — Agnes S. Turnbull
also : its presentation
all of these papers were extremely well attended and received — Veterinary Record
b. : a similar composition written for publication (as in a journal or in the form of a monograph) or circulation
9.
a. : tickets
the paper at the box office is all sold — Barnaby Conrad
especially : free passes
b. : persons admitted free (as to a theater performance)
most of the first-night audience was paper
saw at once that the house was filled with paper — James Joyce
10. : curlpaper — usually used in plural
11. slang : marked playing cards
12. slang : bills, posters, or circulars distributed to advertise something (as an appearance of a traveling show)
the circus fell a couple of days behind its paper
13. : paper work
by paper and red tape — Roy Lewis & Angus Maude
•
- off paper
- on paper
II. transitive verb
( papered ; papered ; papering -p(ə)riŋ ; papers )
1. archaic : to put down on paper : make a memorandum of : describe in writing
2. : to fold or inclose in or attach to paper
paper butterflies
paper pins up
3. : to affix paper to : cover or line with paper ; especially : to furnish with wallpaper
paper a room
4. : sandpaper
paper down until only sufficient color is left to lighten the wood — C.H.Hayward
5. : to supply with an audience augmented by giving out many free tickets
paper a theater for an opening night
6. : to cover (an area) with advertising bills, posters, or circulars (as for a circus engagement or a boxing match)
7. slang : to cover with worthless checks or counterfeit currency
left after papering the country with bad checks — H.L.Davis
can get papered like a circus billboard if you don't know the man you are doing black-market business with — David Dodge
8. : to gloss over, explain away, or patch up (major differences) so as to provide a semblance of amity or agreement — used especially in the phrase paper over the cracks
the meeting … has done little to paper over the cracks between the member states — Economist
intransitive verb
: to hang wallpaper
passion for perpetual painting and papering — Mary H. Vorse
III. adjective
1.
a. : made wholly or almost wholly of paper, paperboard, or papier-mâché
paper bag
paper towel
paper napkin
paper mulch
paper carton
paper plate
b. : like paper (as in texture, strength, or thickness) : papery
2.
a. : carried on by the exchange of written or printed matter : consisting of written communications or printed matter
paper friendships
paper wars
paper bullets
b. : involving or involved with paper work : clerical , desk
those paper procedures by which so much of the business of the Services is transacted — H.W.Dodds
the fighting navy and the paper navy — Frederic Wakeman
the general was transferred to a paper command
3.
a. : authorized or decreed but not effectively enforced : planned but not put into execution : proffered but not fulfilled : nominal
paper blockade
paper promises
the paper strength of an army
a project still in the paper stage
b.
(1) : computed or computable as the result of hypothetical business transactions
paper losses from selling the stocks too soon
(2) : figured on paper without involving actual money or credit transfers
paper surplus
(3) : prospective but unrealized
basing hopes for expansion on paper profits
4. : composed largely of persons admitted by free passes
paper audience
paper house
5. : issued as paper currency
paper mark
paper peso
6. : paperback
a paper edition
paper books
7. of thin fabrics : finished with a crisp smooth surface similar to that of paper
paper taffeta