card catalogue
Noun: 1. A physical, alphabetical listing of items, such as books in a library, where each item is represented by a separate, standardized card. These cards are typically stored in drawers and contain bibliographic information like the author, title, subject, and call number. 2. A library catalog in the form of such a collection of individual file cards. This system was the primary method for organizing and locating library materials before the widespread adoption of computerized databases.
The term "card catalogue" refers specifically to the physical object—the cabinet of drawers containing the cards—and the system it represents. It is a historical term but is still understood and used when referring to older library systems or in a metaphorical sense.
- Noun:
- Researchers often had to consult the large wooden card catalogue to find the books they needed.
- Before digital databases, every library maintained a card catalogue with entries filed by author, title, and subject.
- The information on the card catalogue entry included the publication date and the book's location on the shelf.
- Metaphorical Use: The term can be used metaphorically to describe any detailed, itemized, but somewhat outdated manual filing system.
- His memory was like a perfect card catalogue of every client meeting he'd ever had.
- Card catalog: The American English spelling variant.
- Catalog card / Index card: Refers to the individual card within the catalogue.
- Filing cabinet: The piece of furniture often used to house a card catalogue.
- Online Public Access Catalogue (OPAC): The modern digital successor to the card catalogue.
- Library catalog(ue)
- Index (in the context of a systematic list)
- Finding aid (a broader term for tools used to locate information)
- To be relegated to the card catalogue: A phrase suggesting something is old-fashioned, obsolete, or only of historical interest.
- That theory has been disproven and is now relegated to the card catalogue of scientific history.
- an alphabetical listing of items (e.g., books in a library) with a separate card for each item
- a library catalog in which each publication is described on a separate file card