annotation

noun

an·​no·​ta·​tion ˌa-nə-ˈtā-shən 

1

: a note added by way of comment or explanation

The bibliography was provided with helpful annotations.

2

: the act of annotating something

Examples of annotation in a Sentence

Without the annotations, the diagram would be hard to understand.

the author's annotation of the diagram

Recent Examples on the Web

The cost was estimated at less than $0.003 per annotation, approximately 20 times cheaper than employing human coders through crowdsourcing platforms. —Eric Sydell, Forbes, 18 Dec. 2024

For teachers, the UPDF annotation feature helps insert notes, create interactive forms, and more. —New Atlas, 25 Nov. 2024

What Did FinCEN Say About the Recent Court Developments? FinCEN issued a press release about the recent court developments which is reproduced below with some annotations. —Martin Shenkman, Forbes, 25 Dec. 2024

Meet also offers a ton of annotation options, including emoji, free-draw, and shapes. —PCMAG, 12 Dec. 2024

Word History

Etymology

see annotate

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Kids Definition

annotation

noun

an·​no·​ta·​tion ˌan-ə-ˈtā-shən 

1

: the act of annotating

2

: a note added as a comment or explanation

Legal Definition

annotation

noun

an·​no·​ta·​tion ˌa-nə-ˈtā-shən 

1

: a note added (as to a statute) by way of comment or explanation often furnishing summaries of relevant court decisions

2

capitalized : an informational and descriptive note or essay (as about a case or legal issue) especially in American Law Reports