paper-back

Definition

Noun: - A book with a flexible paper cover, as opposed to a hardcover or hardback book. This is the standard meaning of "paperback" — a book bound in paper, typically less expensive and more portable than a hardcover edition.

Usage Examples

• (A book with a paper cover.)
• (A less expensive edition with a paper cover.)
• (A paper-bound book for casual reading.)

Advanced Usage

• "Trade paperback": a higher-quality paperback, often larger and more durable than a standard mass-market paperback, used for literary fiction or non-fiction.
  • The book was released as a trade paperback with thicker paper and a glossy cover. (A premium paperback edition.)
• "Mass-market paperback": a small, inexpensive paperback sold in high volumes, often in airports or supermarkets.
  • The thriller was a mass-market paperback, priced at just $7.99. (A cheap, widely distributed paperback.)

Variants and Related Words

• Paperback (adj): describing a book that has a paper cover.
  • I bought the paperback edition of the dictionary. (The version with a paper cover.)
• Paperbacked (adj): bound with a paper cover (less common).
  • The paperbacked version is more affordable. (Bound with a paper cover.)
• Hardback (n): a book with a rigid, durable cover (the opposite of paperback).
  • The hardback costs twice as much as the paperback. (A book with a hard cover.)

Synonyms

• Softcover: a book with a flexible paper cover; synonymous with "paperback."
• Paperbound: another term for a paperback book.
• Pocket book: a small, inexpensive paperback, often designed to fit in a pocket.

Related Idioms

• "Paperback writer": a phrase popularized by The Beatles' song, referring to an author who writes inexpensive, mass-market fiction.
  • He dreams of being a paperback writer, churning out bestsellers. (A writer of popular, paperback novels.)
• "In paperback": available as a paperback edition.
  • The novel is now in paperback, making it accessible to more readers. (Published as a paper-covered book.)