textbook
noun · adjective
Simple meaning
A book prepared for use in schools or colleges.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
tehkstbuukSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
ˈtɛkstbʊk
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
education
A book prepared for use in schools or colleges
“His economics textbook is in its tenth edition.”
education
A coursebook, a formal manual of instruction in a specific subject, especially one for use in schools or colleges.
adjective
figuratively
Having the typical characteristics of some class of phenomenon, so that it might be included as an example in a textbook.
figuratively
Done exactly correctly, in an exemplary way that might be described in a textbook.
figuratively
Learned from, or as if learned from, a textbook, as opposed to personal discovery or experience.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- B1 · Intermediate (estimated)
- Frequency
- Moderately Common
- Typical Use
- Neutral / general English
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: A book prepared for use in schools or colleges
Used this way, textbook is a common word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.
“His economics textbook is in its tenth edition.”
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Common
- Connotation
- Matter-of-fact
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Nearby words
- schoolbook , rarer, so it draws attention
- casebook , a specialist term, precise but narrower
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
More ways to use textbook
- “His economics textbook is in its tenth edition.”noun
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
Book / coursebook
Having the typical characteristics
Other combinations
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More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin
Synonyms
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.