- the act of supplying with or using documents or references
- the documents or references supplied
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026
doc•u•men•ta•tion
(dok′yə men tā′shən, -mən-),USA pronunciation n.
doc′u•men•ta′tion•al, adj.
- the use of documentary evidence.
- a furnishing with documents, as to substantiate a claim or the data in a book or article.
- Computingmanuals, listings, diagrams, and other hard- or soft-copy written and graphic materials that describe the use, operation, maintenance, or design of software or hardware:The documentation for the driver program is displayed on the screen.
- document + -ation 1745–55
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
documentation /ˌdɒkjʊmɛnˈteɪʃən/ n
doc•u•ment /n. ˈdɑkyəmənt; v. -ˌmɛnt/USA pronunciation
n. [countable]
v. [~ + object]
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026- a written paper providing proof or evidence, such as a passport, etc.;
a legal or official paper:classified documents about the new missile system.
v. [~ + object]
- to support by documentary evidence, such as by giving references:The lawyers worked to document their case.
- Nautical, Naval Termsto report on, write about, or make a film about (some historical event):She documented the destruction she observed during the Gulf War.
doc•u•ment
(n. dok′yə mənt;v. dok′yə ment′),USA pronunciation n.
v.t.
doc•u•ment•a•ble
(dok′yə men′tə bəl, dok′yə men′-),USA pronunciation adj.
doc′u•ment′er, n.
document, +n.
- a written or printed paper furnishing information or evidence, as a passport, deed, bill of sale, or bill of lading;
a legal or official paper. - any written item, as a book, article, or letter, esp. of a factual or informative nature.
- a computer data file.
- [Archaic.]evidence;
proof.
v.t.
- to furnish with documents.
- to furnish with references, citations, etc., in support of statements made:a carefully documented biography.
- to support by documentary evidence:to document a case.
- Nautical, Naval Termsto provide (a vessel) with a certificate giving particulars concerning nationality, ownership, tonnage, dimensions, etc.
- [Obs.]to instruct.
- Latin documentum example (as precedent, warning, etc.), equivalent. to doc- (stem of docēre to teach) + -u- (variant of -i- -i- before labials) + -mentum -ment
- Anglo-French)
- late Middle English (1400–50
- 6. corroborate, verify, substantiate, validate.
document, +n.
- Computinga computer data file.
'documentation' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):