Agency Dictionary
blueprint
nounPronunciation: /ˈbluː.prɪnt/
In Portuguese: planta
DesignWhat does “blueprint” mean?
A detailed technical drawing or photographic print outlining architectural, engineering, or conceptual plans.
Etymology
A compound of blue and print. It named the copies of technical drawings made by the cyanotype process, which gave white lines on a blue ground and was the usual way of reproducing architectural and engineering plans from the later 19th century. When other methods replaced the process, the word stayed for the plan itself. The figurative sense of a detailed plan or model for something belongs to the 20th century.
Usage note
Today the figurative sense is the more common one: a blueprint for reform, a genetic blueprint. The word is also used as a verb.
Synonyms
Often confused with
- plant
- English plant names a vegetable organism or a factory, never a drawing; Portuguese planta covers both the vegetable and the technical drawing.
Rhymes with
- hint
- mint
- tint
- sprint
Usage examples
While the future of all passengers onboard was uncertain, the chief engineer unfolded the blueprint of the ship on a table while positioning a paperweight on top of it.
Writing.1 - The Titanic Theory While the future of all passengers onboard was uncertain, the chief engineer unfolded the blueprint of the ship on a table while positioning a paperweight on top of it.
Source editions
Where this entry comes from in the Agency editorial.
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Also from these editions: terms
- Antithesisnoun
- A person, thing, or concept that represents the direct or exact opposite of another.
- paperweightnoun
- A small, heavy object placed on loose sheets of paper to prevent them from scattering or blowing away.
- omissionnoun
- The intentional or accidental act of leaving something out or excluding details from a statement or text.
- Treatisenoun
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- helmnoun
- The wheel or tiller by which a ship is steered. Figuratively, the position of control or leadership.
- numbnessnoun
- The state of being unable to feel or react, in the body or, figuratively, in the mind and the will.
- proverbnoun
- A short, pithy saying in frequent and widespread use that expresses a perceived truth or piece of practical advice.
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