daguerreotype

noun

da·​guerre·​o·​type də-ˈger-ō-ˌtīp 

-ˈger-ə-;

-ˈge-rō-,

-rə-,

 also  də-ˈger-ē-ō-ˌtīp,

-ˈger-ē-

: an early photograph produced on a silver or a silver-covered copper plate

also : the process of producing such photographs

daguerreotype transitive verb

daguerreotypist

də-ˈger-ō-ˌtī-pist 

-ˈger-ə-;

-ˈge-rō-

-rə-

 also  də-ˈger-ē-ō-ˌtī-

-ˈger-ē-

noun

daguerreotypy

də-ˈger-ō-ˌtī-pē 

-ˈger-ə-;

-ˈge-rō-

-rə-

 also  də-ˈger-ē-ō-ˌtī-

-ˈger-ē-

noun

Examples of daguerreotype in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The daguerreotype, which opens for online bidding on June 12, carries an estimate of $50,000 to $70,000. —Jennifer Schuessler, New York Times, 11 June 2024

But in a world where the spread of technology makes photo manipulation as easy as a tap on your phone, the idea that a visual image is an absolute truth is as outdated as the daguerreotype. —Deepti Hajela, Quartz, 12 Mar. 2024

Researchers have found that numerical surrogates (symbolized here as a cartoon of James Clerk Maxwell) can arrive at solutions to hard mathematical problems that had previously required high-precision, brute-force math—symbolized by the Maxwell daguerreotype. —IEEE Spectrum, 2 Feb. 2024

Another patron was Pennsylvania oddity collector Joshua Taylor, who runs a ghoulish Instagram account called Angry Beard Antiques, featuring photos of skulls, bones, and postmortem daguerreotypes of dead children. —Brenna Ehrlich, Rolling Stone, 4 Dec. 2023

Word History

Etymology

French daguerréotype, from L. J. M. Daguerre + French -o- + type

First Known Use

1839, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

daguerreotype

noun

da·​guerre·​o·​type də-ˈger-(ē-)ō-ˌtīp 

: an early photograph produced on a metal plate

Etymology

named for L. J. M. Daguerre 1789–1851 French painter and inventor