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library

   Also found in: Acronyms, Encyclopedia, Wikipedia, Hutchinson 0.02 sec.
li·brar·y  (lbrr)
n. pl. li·brar·ies
1.
a. A place in which literary and artistic materials, such as books, periodicals, newspapers, pamphlets, prints, records, and tapes, are kept for reading, reference, or lending.
b. A collection of such materials, especially when systematically arranged.
c. A room in a private home for such a collection.
d. An institution or foundation maintaining such a collection.
2. A commercial establishment that lends books for a fee.
3. A series or set of books issued by a publisher.
4. A collection of recorded data or tapes arranged for ease of use.
5. A set of things similar to a library in appearance, function, or organization: a library of computer programs.
6. Genetics A collection of cloned DNA sequences whose location and identity can be established by mapping the genome of a particular organism.

[Middle English librarie, from Anglo-Norman, from Latin librrium, bookcase, from neuter of librrius, of books, from liber, libr-, book.]

library
Noun
pl -braries
1. a room or building where books and other literary materials are kept
2. a collection of literary materials, films, tapes, or records, kept for borrowing or reference
3. the building or institution that houses such a collection
4. a set of books published as a series, often in a similar format
5. Computers a collection of standard programs, usually stored on disk [Latin liber book]

Library a collection of books, 1540; therefore a collection of knowledge.
Examples: library of God’s law, 1703; of opinions, 1570; of reason, 1485; of my understanding, 1549.
ThesaurusLegend:  Synonyms Related Words Antonyms
Noun1.librarylibrary - a room where books are kept; "they had brandy in the library"
house - a dwelling that serves as living quarters for one or more families; "he has a house on Cape Cod"; "she felt she had to get out of the house"
room - an area within a building enclosed by walls and floor and ceiling; "the rooms were very small but they had a nice view"
2.library - a collection of literary documents or records kept for reference or borrowing
aggregation, collection, accumulation, assemblage - several things grouped together or considered as a whole
bibliotheca - a collection of books
public library - a nonprofit library maintained for public use
rental collection - a collection of books that can be rented by readers in return for a small daily fee
3.library - a depository built to contain books and other materials for reading and study
athenaeum, atheneum - a place where reading materials are available
carrell, cubicle, carrel, stall - small individual study area in a library
depositary, depository, repository, deposit - a facility where things can be deposited for storage or safekeeping
circulating library, lending library - library that provides books for use outside the building
reading room - a room set aside for reading
stacks - storage space in a library consisting of an extensive arrangement of bookshelves where most of the books are stored
4.library - (computing) a collection of standard programs and subroutines that are stored and available for immediate use
computer programing, computer programming, programing, programming - creating a sequence of instructions to enable the computer to do something
library program - a program in a program library
cataloged procedure - a set of control statements that have been placed in a library and can be retrieved by name
library routine - a debugged routine that is maintained in a program library
aggregation, collection, accumulation, assemblage - several things grouped together or considered as a whole
5.library - a building that houses a collection of books and other materials
building, edifice - a structure that has a roof and walls and stands more or less permanently in one place; "there was a three-story building on the corner"; "it was an imposing edifice"
Translations
Spanish library [ˈlaɪbrərɪ] nbiblioteca
French library [ˈlaɪbrərɪ] nbibliothèque f
German library [ˈlaɪbrərɪ] nBibliothek f;
(institution) → Bücherei f

Italian library [ˈlaɪbrərɪ] nbiblioteca

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THE Library at Windygates was the largest and the handsomest room in the house.
Sir Robert's library soon became famous, and many scholars came to read there, for Sir Robert was very kind in allowing other people to use his books.
It was the only social center of the garrison beside the strictly military headquarters; it had a billiard room and a bar, and even an excellent reference library for those officers who were so perverse as to take their profession seriously.
 
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