Pastedown

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A sheet of paper glued to the inside of a book's front or back cover, typically forming a decorative or protective layer
2. The leaf of paper pasted onto the inner surface of a book's cover, often printed with a pattern or left blank
3. A paper leaf affixed to the inside of a book cover that serves both decorative and structural purposes

Etymology: A pastedown is the sheet of paper glued to the inside of a book's cover, covering the board and the back of the first and last pages. The word is built from "paste down", the phrase for sticking one thing flat onto another with adhesive, and it works as a noun formed from that verb phrase. The process it names is the bookbinder's task of pasting that lining in place, so the noun was coined to label the piece of paper that results from the act.

Synonyms: endpaper, flyleaf