obiter scriptum

/ˈɒbɪtɚ ˈskɹɪptəm/

noun

A smaller piece, written during the process of writing a larger piece, which is supplementary or incidental to that larger piece; something written on the way to writing something else; a subsidiary composition or publication.

“For quotations using this term, see Citations:obiter scriptum.”

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Meanings

nounobiter scriptum (plural obiter scripta)

plural obiter scripta

  1. formalA smaller piece, written during the process of writing a larger piece, which is supplementary or incidental to that larger piece; something written on the way to writing something else; a subsidiary composition or publication.

    For quotations using this term, see Citations:obiter scriptum.

Origin

From Latin: obiter scrīptum (“[a thing] written on the way”), from obiter (“on the way, incidentally”) + scrīptum (“text, anything written, writing”). Formed on the pattern of the earlier obiter dictum, with which it is often paired (especially in the plural).

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Cite this entry
APA

obiter scriptum. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/obiter%20scriptum

MLA

“obiter scriptum.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/obiter%20scriptum. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “obiter scriptum,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/obiter%20scriptum.

Source: obiter scriptum on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.