I want to know the precise English word for the paper wrapped around these notebooks.
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19Just a warning, i have read the answers, and I wouldn't know what they were talking about if I had read any of them, before today.– WendyGJan 30 at 14:25
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On a hunch, I did a search on "paper strap", and saw an advertisement for "bill straps" to bind currency banknotes together in a similar way.– Doug WarrenJan 30 at 17:24
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1There very likely isn't a precise English word for this particular thing.– N. VirgoJan 31 at 13:07
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There are several precise words for this thing, @N.Virgo. Which one you choose is probably going to be determined by what particular industry you work in and what others in that industry call said "little paper band thing".– FreeManJan 31 at 18:14
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There's a difference between ''there is not a word for X'' and ''there is a word but most native speakers don't know it''.– Hollis WilliamsJan 31 at 19:52
5 Answers
It is a bellyband:
a band of paper around a new book, usually printed with information about the book's contents and sometimes used instead of a book jacket.
a band that is used as packaging or decoration around a book, magazine, or similar item.
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4Are you sure? The OP's picture is not of a book, but of three notebooks; blank notebooks that can be written in. The band of paper around those three notebooks is used to bind them together in a packaging that makes it clear it's a set of three. That looks very different from the belly band used in libraries for newly-published books and it probably doesn't have the same name.– StefJan 29 at 13:49
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2@Stef - yes, bellyband applies to the OP pictures as well. As you can see from the description the band is..”usually printed with information about the book's contents”. The band provides information of what is inside, be it a book or a memo book. Jan 29 at 13:53
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7Oxford Languages Dictionary gives a broader definition: bellyband: a band wrapped around an item of merchandise, especially a book or magazine. Jan 29 at 14:04
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2No law against using two references. A single dictionary may be incomplete / out-of-date / over-tolerant / noncomprehensive .... You can be almost certain that OL have justification for their choice of 'item of merchandise, especially ...' here. Jan 29 at 14:15
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4I am absolutely persuaded by the references cited this is the right answer, but as a native speaker who still reads paper books a fair bit, I did not know this word before today. Unless speaking to someone who works in the publishing industry, it may be helpful to provide abundant context or even a full definition before using this word if you want to be understood. Jan 30 at 22:57
sleeve
Apart from the formal / technical answers already posted, in everyday conversation (England, UK) I'd simply refer to it as a sleeve (or a cardboard sleeve).
https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/sleeve
a cover to protect something:
Can you put the record back in its sleeve, please?
or
a tube-shaped covering
(The dictionary definition says "to protect a part of a machine", but common usage would be a lot more general than that)
If you do an image search for "cardboard sleeve" in your favourite search engine you'll find a fair number of similar examples...
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A sleeve is normally intended for protection, as the Cambridge definition you quote says - records most notably, but also DVDs, video games, knives, etc. This little strip doesn't protect anything. It's not a bad suggestion, but there seem to be more exact alternatives.– Stuart FJan 31 at 9:58
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@StuartF - The other answers are definitely more precise (which the OP asked for, tbf), but they sounds more like technical terms used in the packaging industry rather than general day-to-day use - I've never heard them before. Depends on what the OP wants I guess - doesn't hurt to have another option :-)...– mclaytonJan 31 at 10:11
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@StuartF sometimes the exact word isn't actually useful for a general audience– WendyGJan 31 at 15:36
wrap-around band
A paper strip wrapped around a book like a dust jacket, but smaller in height than the book. It is typically used for promotional purposes and may be added post-publication .**..
From: wrap-around band in The Oxford Companion to the Book
Subjects: Literature — Bibliography
The Oxford Companion to the Book
The same would go for the notebooks in the question.
paper bands
Or, less fancy, just paper bands:
I would have called this an obi (on Wiktionary as “A strip of paper looped around a book or other product”). But this is possibly just jargon relating to the paper strips included with CDs and games imported from Japan where the word originates.
wrapper noun the cover,
1)usually of paper or cellophane, in which something is wrapped
2)a dust jacket of a book
Just because the wrapper has got very small and less wasteful, that is what it is, the wrapper holding 3 books together.
And in a sentence
Just take that little wrapper off the books so we can get started.
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