documentary
documentary — adjective
1. showing real events and real people through film, television, or photography, wi
showing real events and real people through film, television, or photography, without invented stories or acting — for example, a documentary series about wildlife, or a documentary photo essay about city life.
Ayesha watches a documentary series every week to improve her English.
adjective before noun: documentary series / film / programme / photography
The photography exhibition featured documentary works that captured real events from the 1960s civil rights movement.
Élise prefers documentary photography because it captures real moments.
The director's documentary style avoids narration and lets the images speak.
Several documentary programmes about climate change aired on national television last month.
- factual
wider in scope — can describe any content based on facts, not just audio-visual media
- non-fiction
more formal; covers books, articles, and other written works as well as films
- real-life
informal, often used in casual conversation
- fictional
invented rather than based on real events
- dramatised
adapted into a dramatic form, not purely factual
文法句型
documentary + noun (film / series / programme / photography)
用法筆記
Used attributively before nouns. In modern media contexts, it can also appear in names of TV channels or content categories (e.g. 'a documentary channel', 'documentary content').
常見錯誤
2. kept or presented as written or printed records, rather than told by word of mou
kept or presented as written or printed records, rather than told by word of mouth — for example, documentary evidence of a sale, or documentary proof of a person's identity.
The judge accepted documentary proof of the loan but rejected the verbal promise.
contrast with verbal promise — clarifies 'document form, not spoken'
Employers usually ask for documentary evidence of your qualifications before hiring.
The landlord requested documentary records of the tenant's salary before signing a lease.
Without documentary confirmation of the booking, the hotel may cancel your reservation.
The scholarship committee wants documentary support such as transcripts and letters of reference.
文法句型
documentary + noun (evidence / proof / records / support)
用法筆記
Almost always used directly before a noun in formal or official contexts. Common collocates include evidence, proof, records, support, and confirmation.
常見錯誤
documentary — noun
1. a non-fiction film or broadcast programme that provides factual coverage of a re
a non-fiction film or broadcast programme that provides factual coverage of a real person, event, or scientific issue.
The documentary about the history of the Internet used original footage and interviews with the engineers who built the network.
noun pattern: documentary about [topic]
The documentary follows three families as they prepare for a natural disaster.
Ryo's favourite documentary follows a team of real marine biologists studying deep-sea ecosystems off the coast of Japan.
A team of journalists is producing a documentary on plastic pollution in the Yangtze River.
This documentary uses expert interviews to explain the science of climate change.
- doc
informal shortening, common in casual speech
- non-fiction film
more formal and specific to cinema contexts
- factual programme
chiefly British, often used for TV content
- drama
a fictional story performed by actors
- feature film
a full-length fictional film, usually for entertainment
文法句型
documentary about [topic]
documentary on [topic]
用法筆記
In informal spoken English, speakers sometimes shorten this to doc (e.g. 'I saw a great doc about space last night'). This is common but not appropriate for formal writing.