Stationery

How to spell stationery

10 letters · 4 syllables

How to pronounce stationery

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does stationery mean?

1. nounPaper, envelopes, pens, and other materials used for writing and office work.

Stationery in a sentence

• Please order more stationery from the supplier.

• She bought a beautiful set of stationery for letter writing.

• The shop sold pens, paper, and other stationery.

• Headed stationery adds a professional touch.

• Office stationery includes envelopes and sticky notes.

Where does stationery come from?

Language of origin: Latin

The word traces back to the Latin statio, which literally meant 'a standing still' or 'a fixed post', the same root that gives us 'station'. In medieval England a 'stationer' was a tradesman who, unlike travelling pedlars, sold goods from a fixed stall or shop, very often near a university or cathedral. Because these fixed-shop merchants dealt mainly in books, paper, ink, and writing supplies, the trade word 'stationer' became firmly attached to the paper trade. By the early 1700s the spelling 'stationery' had split off to name the writing materials themselves, deliberately distinguished from 'stationary' meaning 'not moving'. The two words still share that 'standing in one place' origin, and the only reliable memory hook is that stationERy is sold by a stationER and includes papER, while stationAry means standing still.

How the word is built

• station (fixed place)
• -ery (the goods of)

Words that sound like stationery

They sound the same but mean different things, so the meaning decides which spelling to write.

• stationary: Not moving; remaining fixed in one position.