ditto

Reading level: hard

Estimated CEFR level: C2 — Proficiency

Estimated from word frequency; not an official CEFR classification.

Definition

  1. noun a mark used to indicate the word above it should be repeated
  2. verb repeat an action or statement

Etymology

First attested in 1625. From regional Italian ditto, variant of detto, past participle of dire (“to say”), from Latin dīcō (“to say, to speak”). Not related to English dittography or Italian dito (“finger”). The specific meaning of making copies of paper comes from ditto machine, a genericization from the brand name of a spirit duplicator.

In classic literature

Synonyms

ditto mark

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