What does datelined mean?
Datelined means marked or stamped with a date, particularly an article, document, or publication that displays the date on which it was issued or completed. In this use, it is more exact than dated because it refers to the physical presence of a date rather than to something being old-fashioned or no longer current. The word can also be used as a verb: to dateline something is to assign it a date or supply it with a date marker. Datelined is relatively uncommon in everyday conversation but useful in publishing, archives, cataloguing, and document-based research. It may describe a datelined article, a datelined record, or material bearing a publication date. Although dated can sometimes have the same literal meaning as datelined, it has several additional and highly common connotations relating to age, fashion, or obsolescence, so datelined is preferable when the date itself is the important feature.
Marked, stamped, or otherwise supplied with a date, especially indicating when a document, article, or publication was issued.
"The archive preserved the datelined original of the catalogue."
Used chiefly in publishing, archival, and cataloguing contexts.
To assign a date to something or mark it with a date.
"The editor datelined the manuscript before filing it."
This use is less common than the participial or adjectival use.
A datelined document carries time on its face, preserving the moment it entered the world.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does datelined come from?
Datelined was formed from the English word date and line, with the participial ending -ed. Date comes through Middle English from Anglo-French and ultimately Latin datum, while line descends through Middle English from Latin linea. The compound dateline developed in connection with the heading that gave a dispatch its date and place of origin; datelined subsequently came to describe an item bearing such a date.
Related word forms
How datelined is actually used
The adjective is relatively uncommon but precise in editorial, archival, and cataloguing contexts. It should not be confused with dated in the sense of being old-fashioned; datelined simply identifies something as bearing a date.
Easily confused with datelined
Datelined specifically means bearing a date, whereas dated can also mean old-fashioned, no longer current, or otherwise past its prime.