manuscript
UK[ˈmænjuskrɪpt]US[ˈmænjəskrɪpt]
n
A book, document, or piece of music written by hand, not printed.
n
An author's text that has not yet been published.
Morpheme Breakdown
manu
script
manu
hand
script
written
Etymology
The word manuscript is a direct compound from Latin elements, entering English in the late 16th century. It literally means "written by hand," from manu scriptus. The first element, manus (hand), is of Proto-Indo-European origin, related to the concept of grasping or handling. The second, from scribere (to write), evolved from the Proto-Indo-European root skribh-, meaning to cut, scratch, or engrave, reflecting ancient writing techniques on clay or wax. The term originally distinguished hand-copied documents from printed ones after the invention of the printing press, and its meaning later expanded to include any author's unpublished text, regardless of the physical method of writing.
Analysis
Structure: manu (hand) + script (written)
- manu: From Latin manus, meaning "hand". It functions as a combining form indicating a relationship to the hand.
- script: From Latin scriptus, the past participle of scribere, meaning "to write". It functions as a root denoting something written.
Examples
The library holds a priceless collection of medieval manuscripts.
She submitted her manuscript to several publishers.
The original manuscript of the novel showed many edits in the author's own handwriting.