scribe

¹

[skrahyb]

noun

1. a person who serves as a professional copyist, especially one who made copies of manuscripts before the invention of printing.

2. a public clerk or writer, usually one having official status.

3. Also called sopher, sofer. Judaism.,  one of the group of Palestinian scholars and teachers of Jewish law and tradition, active from the 5th century b.c. to the 1st century a.d., who transcribed, edited, and interpreted the Bible.

4. a writer or author, especially a journalist.

verb (used without object)

scribed, scribing 

1. to act as a scribe; write.

verb (used with object)

scribed, scribing 

1. to write down.

scribe

²

[skrahyb]

verb (used with object)

scribed, scribing 

1. to mark or score (wood or the like) with a pointed instrument as a guide to cutting or assembling.

noun

1. scriber.

Scribe

³

[skreeb]

noun

1. Augustin Eugène 1791–1861, French dramatist.

scribe

¹

/ skraɪb /

noun

1. a person who copies documents, esp a person who made handwritten copies before the invention of printing

2. a clerk or public copyist

3. Old Testament a recognized scholar and teacher of the Jewish Law

4. Judaism a man qualified to write certain documents in accordance with religious requirements

5. an author or journalist: used humorously

6. another name for scriber

verb

1. to score a line on (a surface) with a pointed instrument, as in metalworking

Scribe

²

/ skrib /

noun

1. Augustin Eugène (oɡystɛ̃ øʒɛn). 1791–1861, French author or coauthor of over 350 vaudevilles, comedies, and libretti for light opera

Other Word Forms

• scribal adjective
• unscribal adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of scribe¹

1350–1400; Middle English < Latin scrība clerk, derivative of scrībere to write

Origin of scribe²

First recorded in 1670–80; perhaps aphetic form of inscribe

Word History and Origins

Origin of scribe¹

(in the senses: writer, etc) C14: from Latin scrība clerk, from scrībere to write; C17 (vb): perhaps from _inscribe

Example Sentences

Back in California, Scribe is another tech firm that allows companies to automatically create AI user guides.

From BBC

Scribes in medieval Europe called the meteor shower “the tears of St. Lawrence” because the streaks in the sky fell on the anniversary of St. Lawrence’s martyrdom.

From Los Angeles Times

Then we’ll stop by Lady & Larder for a Scribe rosé pinot noir, colorful candles and crackers.

From Los Angeles Times

One of the biggest prizes in Rare Books is the “Well of the Scribes,” a sculpture depicting Pegasus and writers from different cultures, which disappeared from outside the library during construction in 1969.

From Los Angeles Times

Calligrapher Jenny Collier, from the London Scribes company, says the craft skill of handwriting the invitations is "quite a meditative practice".

From BBC

Related Words

• author 
• journalist 
• writer