daguerreotype

noun

da·​guerre·​o·​type də-ˈger-ō-ˌtīp How to pronounce daguerreotype (audio)
-ˈger-ə-;
-ˈge-rō-,
-rə-,
 also  də-ˈger-ē-ō-ˌtīp,
-ˈger-ē-
: an early photograph produced on a silver or a silver-covered copper plate
also : the process of producing such photographs
daguerreotype transitive verb
daguerreotypist
də-ˈger-ō-ˌtī-pist How to pronounce daguerreotype (audio)
-ˈger-ə-;
-ˈge-rō-
-rə-
 also  də-ˈger-ē-ō-ˌtī-
-ˈger-ē-
noun
daguerreotypy
də-ˈger-ō-ˌtī-pē How to pronounce daguerreotype (audio)
-ˈger-ə-;
-ˈge-rō-
-rə-
 also  də-ˈger-ē-ō-ˌtī-
-ˈger-ē-
noun

Examples of daguerreotype in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web But in a world where the spread of technology makes photo manipulation as easy as a tap on your phone, the idea that a visual image is an absolute truth is as outdated as the daguerreotype. Deepti Hajela, Quartz, 12 Mar. 2024 Researchers have found that numerical surrogates (symbolized here as a cartoon of James Clerk Maxwell) can arrive at solutions to hard mathematical problems that had previously required high-precision, brute-force math—symbolized by the Maxwell daguerreotype. IEEE Spectrum, 2 Feb. 2024 Another patron was Pennsylvania oddity collector Joshua Taylor, who runs a ghoulish Instagram account called Angry Beard Antiques, featuring photos of skulls, bones, and postmortem daguerreotypes of dead children. Brenna Ehrlich, Rolling Stone, 4 Dec. 2023 There’s a skeleton, a roaring lion—Saar is a Leo—and a daguerreotype of a white woman, a reference to Saar’s maternal grandmother, who was Irish. Hilton Als, The New Yorker, 20 Nov. 2023 The exhibition includes the first photograph of Douglass, a 1841 daguerreotype on loan from a private collector, along with several other images that offer a timeline of Douglass’ experimentation with pose and expression. Janelle Harris Dixon, Smithsonian Magazine, 20 Oct. 2023 Staring back in the daguerreotypes was Renty, who appeared to be about 70 at the time. Jennifer Berry Hawes, ProPublica, 9 Oct. 2023 Like the famous daguerreotype of Emily Dickinson, the Eliot image is both familiar and elusive. Anna Mundow, WSJ, 18 Aug. 2023 The curators finish the exhibition with a selection of tiny daguerreotypes of anonymous Black Americans all taken before the 13th Amendment abolished slavery — quiet statements of their own humanity that only technological advances of the time could reveal. Globe Staff, BostonGlobe.com, 14 June 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'daguerreotype.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

French daguerréotype, from L. J. M. Daguerre + French -o- + type

First Known Use

1839, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of daguerreotype was in 1839

Dictionary Entries Near daguerreotype

Cite this Entry

“Daguerreotype.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/daguerreotype. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

daguerreotype

noun
da·​guerre·​o·​type də-ˈger-(ē-)ō-ˌtīp How to pronounce daguerreotype (audio)
: an early photograph produced on a metal plate
Etymology

named for L. J. M. Daguerre 1789–1851 French painter and inventor

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