Bulleting

Part of speech: verb, noun

Definitions

1. The act of creating bullet points to organize information clearly and concisely
2. A method of presenting lists or important items visually with dots or symbols in written communication
3. The process of formatting text using bullet symbols to enhance readability and emphasize key points

Etymology: The word "bulleting" is simply the present participle and gerund of "bullet" used as a verb, so the interesting history belongs to "bullet" itself. That noun reached English in Middle English as an official tag or badge of registration or identification, and its roots run back to Old French "bullete," a diminutive of "boule," meaning "ball." A small ball-shaped seal or round tag gave the word its first shape, and the sense of a small round object lingers in the modern meaning. The "bullet" that flies from a gun is a later development, and the bulleted list is later still. Its shape, a small round mark placed before each line, is what gives the typographic sense its name, so a typist or designer who "bullets" a list is applying a dot-like tag to each entry, much as a medieval official once attached a small round badge to a document.

Synonyms: posting, announcing, notifying