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Definition of pamphlet - 3 dictionary results

pam⋅phlet

[pam-flit]
–noun
1. a complete publication of generally less than 80 pages stitched or stapled together and usually having a paper cover.
2. a short treatise or essay, generally a controversial tract, on some subject of contemporary interest: a political pamphlet.

Origin:
1375–1425; late ME pamflet < AL panfletus, pamfletus, syncopated var. of Pamphiletus, dim. of ML Pamphilus, title of a 12th-century Latin comedy. See -et


pam⋅phlet⋅ar⋅y, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To pamphlet
pam·phlet   (pām'flĭt)   
n.  
  1. An unbound printed work, usually with a paper cover.

  2. A short essay or treatise, usually on a current topic, published without a binding.


[Middle English pamflet, from Medieval Latin pamfletus, from Pamphiletus, diminutive of Pamphilus, amatory Latin poem of the 12th century, from Greek pamphilos, beloved by all : pan-, pan- + philos, beloved.]
pam'phlet·ar'y (pām'flĭ-těr'ē) adj.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

pamphlet 
"small, unbound treatise," 1387, from Anglo-Latin panfletus, popular short form of "Pamphilus, seu de Amore" ("Pamphilus, or about Love"), a short L. love poem of 12c., popular and widely copied in Middle Ages; the name from Gk. pamphilos "loved by all," from pan- "all" + philos "loving, dear." Meaning "brief work dealing with questions of current interest" is late 16c. Pamphleteer (n.) is first recorded 1642.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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