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blue book

blue book

7.2
An official report published by the British government, usually bound in blue
  • noun
  • /bluː bʊk/
  • UK
translation icon : libro azul
  • The committee referenced the blue book released last year in their analysis.

Examples

  • She found a blue book in the parliamentary archives detailing foreign affairs.

  • Historians often consult blue books to understand policy decisions from that era.

  • The latest blue book was published last month.

  • Have you seen the new blue book on government policy?

  • The blue book contains detailed information about government policies and procedures.

  • During the meeting, the minister referred to the blue book to support his argument.

  • Students often consult the blue book for guidelines on writing their essays.

Synonyms

white paper
vsblue book
  • Formal
11 5.6

An official report that explains plans or how something works

is used for official government reports generally, not only for proposals or technical detail
white book
vsblue book
  • UK
7.0

An official government report that explains policy and plans

is published specifically by the British government rather than by any government

Surface Forms

blue book singular
blue books plural

Morphology

blue + book

The literal reading 'a book that is blue' follows directly from combining 'blue' and 'book', so the composition is partly transparent. However, the specialized institutional meaning—an exam answer booklet used at colleges—is an idiomatic, culture-specific extension that is not fully predictable from the constituents and may require exposure or contextual knowledge, so it is only partially transparent to learners.

Etymology

Blue book means a government report because the British government once printed its official reports as blue books, so 'blue book' came to mean an 'official report'.