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Glite Dictionary
📕 A stiff book 📕 With a stiff cover
hardcover

hardcover

34 2.3
A book with thick, stiff covers instead of a thin paper cover
  • noun
  • /ˈhɑrdˌkʌvər/
  • US
translation icon : libro de tapa dura
  • The library had a special section for hardcover books that were more durable than paperbacks.
  • a hardcover or paperback
  • hardcover and CD
  • hardcover and cassette

But you can charge way more for a hardcover.

Examples

  • My story collection did well in hardcover and came out in paperback two years later.

    Academic text (2009)

  • She bought the latest novel in hardcover because she loves the feel of a sturdy book.

  • - You were happy when you found out your book was going to be released in hardcover, right?

    Paperback (2015)

  • "Yes, of course," she replied, and pulled a thin hardcover book out of her black bag.

    Fiction book (1997)

  • I remove the sleeve and look at the red hardcover binding.

    Academic text (1998)

  • Opening the mailer, I slipped out the contents - a brand new fat hardcover book.

    Fiction book (2000)

  • His latest book, Rot & Ruin, is out this month in hardcover from Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers.

    Academic text (2010)

  • Bookshelves crammed with thick hardcovers and trade paperbacks lined one wall.

    Fiction book (1996)

  • Many collectors prefer hardcover editions of classic literature for their longevity and aesthetic appeal.

Synonyms

hardback
vshardcover
8 3.2

A book with stiff covers instead of thin paper ones

emphasizes protective covers made of cardboard cloth or leather

Antonyms

paperback
1.6

Of a book, having a soft paper cover rather than a hard cover

How Small

poche
  • UK
9.8
booklet
40 1.9
paperback
1.6
hardcover
  • US
34 2.3
bookful
5.8

Surface Forms

hardcover singular
hardcovers plural

Morphology

hardcover = hard + cover (transparent) = hard + cover

A straightforward noun compound denoting a book with a rigid cover; meaning follows directly from the components.

Etymology

The noun hardcover comes from the same parts, hard 'firm or not soft' and cover 'to protect', and it originally meant the firm cover of a book. That's why a hardcover copy is a book with strong, protective covers that last longer than a paperback.