Records

Part of speech: noun, verb

Pronunciation: /ˈɹɛkɚdz/

Definitions

1. Collections of documented information kept for reference or evidence ; physical items like vinyl discs used to store and play music ; official accounts or reports of events, transactions, or achievements kept for history or verification
2. Sets of written or electronic data preserved for future consultation or proof ; media formats such as vinyl discs that hold audio recordings ; formally maintained summaries or logs of events or performances used to confirm facts
3. Assemblies of information permanently maintained for documentation or validation ; audio storage devices typically in disc form to play music ; authorized logs or reports detailing events or individual accomplishments for record-keeping

Etymology: The noun "records" is the plural of "record," and the story starts in Latin with the heart. Latin "cor" meant "heart," and in Latin thinking the heart was also the seat of memory and understanding, so the mind and the heart were not separated the way they are now. Latin speakers combined "re-" ("back, again") with "cor" to form "recordari," meaning "remember" or "call to mind," literally to bring something back through the heart. The word passed into Old French as "recorder," meaning "to register" or "to recall," and then into Middle English as "recorden." The noun "record" developed from the verb in English, so the thing kept in writing came from the act of calling something back to mind. The plural "records" follows the same path, and it is why an archive is a set of documents while a record can also be a single disc.

Synonyms: documents, files, archives, registrations, accounts

Antonyms: forgetfulness, loss, amnesia