What does plagiary mean?
A plagiary is an instance of plagiarism, meaning the unauthorized appropriation of another writer’s or artist’s work and the presentation of it as original. The word can also refer, especially in older usage, to a person guilty of this practice. In modern English, it sounds more literary or historical than the much more common terms “plagiarism” and “plagiarist.” A writer may be accused of plagiary when a substantial part of a text reproduces another author’s language or ideas without acknowledgment. The term has a strongly accusatory association and is usually reserved for clear, attributable borrowing rather than ordinary resemblance, shared source material, or ideas that are not copyrightable.
nounAn instance of literary or artistic plagiarism, or a person who plagiarizes another’s work. The term is chiefly literary and historical in modern usage.
- An act of literary or artistic plagiarism.
- A person who plagiarizes another person’s work; a plagiarist.
"The scholar denied that the passage was a plagiary, insisting that the similarity resulted from a shared source."
"The essay was dismissed as a plagiary of an earlier publication."
"In Victorian criticism, a plagiary was treated with a mixture of indignation and fascination."
Plural forms are possible but uncommon, especially in modern usage.
"The catalog documented several plagiaries involving the same source text."
Once a grave accusation of literary theft, “plagiary” now sounds almost as antique as the Renaissance scholars who first used it.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does plagiary come from?
The word comes from Latin plagiarius, meaning a literary thief or plagiarist. Its root, plagiāre, referred to kidnapping or stealing a person and was later extended metaphorically to the appropriation of literary material. English borrowed the term in the late sixteenth century in the context of literary borrowing and imitation, and the modern sense developed from that historical association.
Related word forms
How plagiary is actually used
The word is relatively uncommon in contemporary English; “plagiarism” is normally preferred for the act, and “plagiarist” for the person. Its older usage can sound literary, formal, or historical.
Easily confused with plagiary
Plagiarism is the practice or act of using another person’s work as one’s own, whereas a plagiary is an instance of that act or, historically, a person who commits it.