Bookmark

Part of speech: noun, verb

Pronunciation: /ˈbʊk.mɑː(ɹ)k/

Definitions

1. A physical or digital item used to mark a specific page in a book ; a saved link that lets a user quickly access a specific website or webpage
2. An object placed within pages to mark where one left off reading ; a stored shortcut used to revisit a particular online address easily
3. Something used to hold a reader's spot in printed material ; an internet browser feature that stores a favorite web address for future visits

Etymology: Long before printed books had ribbons, readers marked their place with a small strip of material or a thin piece of wood. The compound "bookmark" is simple in its parts: "book" and "mark," with "mark" meaning a sign or token. Its surprising twist is the Old English predecessor. Anglo-Saxon readers already had a word for this object, "æstel," but it was borrowed from Old Irish "astal," which itself came from Latin "hastula," meaning "little spear" or "splint." A splinter of wood, it seems, was the first bookmark that English speakers named. The Middle English form "boke-merk" was eventually replaced by the native compound, which English shares with several Scandinavian languages. Danish "bogmærke," Swedish "bokmärke," Norwegian "bokmerke," and Icelandic "bókamerki" all use the same structure, so the word was formed independently in each language from the same ingredients. In the digital era, the term was extended to saved links. A browser bookmark works on the same principle as the paper original: it marks a place you want to return to, even though no paper is involved.

Synonyms: marker, ribbon