Scryvener

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. An archaic term for a person whose job was to copy documents or write out texts by hand, a scribe or scrivener
2. A professional penman of earlier times who wrote out letters, contracts, and manuscripts for others
3. An old-fashioned spelling for someone employed to copy or draw up written records and legal papers

Etymology: In medieval England, a scrivener was a professional writer who drafted and copied legal documents for clients who could not write them themselves. Over time, drawing up contracts put many scriveners in touch with people who needed money, and they began arranging loans and bonds, so the job grew into something close to a broker of credit. The word comes from Anglo-Norman "escriveyn," from Old French "escrivain," ultimately from Latin "scriba," meaning "scribe." Its root is the same as that of "scribe" and "script," so the word's core meaning has always been about writing. "Scryvener" is an older spelling variant of the same word, with a "y" in place of the "i." It was not a separate word with its own history, and the spelling does not change the meaning.