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notebook

n.
US //ˈnoʊtˌbʊk// UK //nˈəʊtbʊk// note·book
  1. 1 paper book (n.)
    A1 Beginner

    a book with empty pages that you use for writing notes or drawing.

    a book of plain, lined, or gridded paper used for recording memoranda, sketches, or academic notes.

    Example

    She always carries a small notebook in her bag to write down new ideas.

    Example

    The researcher filled several notebooks with handwritten observations before digitising the data for the final report.

    Usage

    countable
  2. 2 laptop computer (n.)
    A2 Elementary Computing

    a small, portable computer that you can carry easily.

    a portable personal computer, typically small and light enough to be used on one's lap.

    Example

    He opened his notebook to check his emails while waiting at the airport.

    Example

    The company issued high-end notebooks to all remote employees to ensure they had sufficient processing power for video editing.

    Usage

    countable

    Teacher's tip

    While 'laptop' is more common in casual speech, 'notebook' is often used in technical or marketing contexts to emphasise portability.
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  1. 3 coding interface (n.)
    C1 Advanced Technical Computing

    a type of computer program where you can mix live code, math, and text.

    a virtual environment or interface used in literate programming that allows for the integration of executable code, rich text, and data visualisations.

    Example

    The data scientist shared a notebook containing the analysis and the charts.

    Example

    By using a notebook interface, the team could document their algorithmic choices alongside the actual code execution for better reproducibility.

    Usage

    often used as an attributive noun

    Teacher's tip

    This sense is specific to data science and software development, most commonly associated with tools like Jupyter.
    • computational notebook
Origin

From note + book.

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