microfilm

/ˌmaɪkrəˈfɪlm/

/ˈmaɪkrəʊfɪlm/

Other forms: microfilmed; microfilms; microfilming

Microfilm is a miniature photographic reproduction of a document. If you're looking for very old newspapers in the library, you'll probably find them stored on microfilm.

Microfilm is exactly what it sounds like: small film. These tiny photographs have to be looked at through a special viewer that magnifies them, but because they're so small, many print documents can fit on one reel of film. Microfilm is a great way for libraries to store many documents in a small space. Even the advent of the internet hasn't made microfilm obsolete — it's still a great way to preserve documents.

Definitions of microfilm

1. noun

   film on which materials are photographed at greatly reduced size; useful for storage; a magnification system is used to read the material
   types:

   microfiche

   small sheet of microfilm on which many pages of material have been photographed; a magnification system is used to read the material

   type of:

   film, photographic film

   photographic material consisting of a base of celluloid covered with a photographic emulsion; used to make negatives or transparencies
2. verb

   record text or images photographically and at greatly reduced size on film
   type of:

   film

   record in film