Opisthographs

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A manuscript or document that has writing on both sides of the page
2. a multilayered record featuring inscriptions or illustrations on both the front and reverse
3. referring to any item that displays text or markings on its obverse and reverse surfaces

Etymology: "Opisthographs" is the plural of "opisthograph," a noun for any item with writing or markings on both its front and back faces. The word is built from two Greek-derived elements: "opistho-," from Greek "opisthen," meaning "behind" or "at the back," and "-graph," from Greek "graphein," meaning "to write." Together they describe something written on the back as well as the front. The ancient world offers the most famous examples. Papyrus scrolls and clay tablets were often inscribed on both sides when writers ran short of fresh surface, and the term applies naturally to such objects. Because the same stem also gives English "opisthodomos," a term for the back porch of a Greek temple, the element carries a clear sense of rear placement throughout the family of words.