documentary

Meanings

1. 1
   adj

   Presented objectively without the insertion of fictional matter.

   a documentary film

2. 2
   noun

   A film, TV program, publication etc. which presents a social, political, scientific or historical subject in a factual or informative manner.

   Fifteen documentaries are in sharp-elbowed competition to be among the five Oscar nominees.

3. 3
   noun

   Such works collectively, as a genre.

   Such sequences draw attention to the affective appeals that environmental documentary typically makes, precisely by absenting those appeals.

4. 4
   adj

   emphasizing or expressing things as perceived without distortion of personal feelings, insertion of fictional matter, or interpretation

5. 5
   adj

   relating to or consisting of or derived from documents

6. 6
   noun

   a film or TV program presenting the facts about a person or event

7. 7
   adj

   Of, related to, or based on documents.

8. 8
   adj

   Which serves to document (record or illustrate) a subject.

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *deḱ-der. Proto-Italic *dokeō Latin doceō Proto-Indo-European *-mn̥ Proto-Indo-European *-mn̥tom Proto-Italic *-məntom Latin -mentum Latin documentumbor. French document Proto-Indo-European *-yósder. Proto-Italic *-āzios Latin -āriusder. French -aire French documentairebor. English documentary From French adjective and (hence) noun documentaire, from document, from Latin documentum. Equivalent to document + -ary.