soft copy

noun

A digital copy of a document, rather than a copy printed on paper.

Opposite
hard copy
Ask AI about this wordChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

Meanings

nounsoft copy (plural soft copies)

plural soft copies · alternative softcopy

  1. A digital copy of a document, rather than a copy printed on paper.

    Antonyms: hard copy

Synonyms & antonyms

nounA digital copy of a document, rather than a copy printed on paper.

Opposite
hard copy

Origin

From soft + copy, attributed to American information technologist, philosopher, and sociologist Ted Nelson.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Greek ψηφιακό αντίγραφο
  • ψηφιακό αντίγραφο (psifiakó antígrafo)digital copy of a document
Indonesian salinan digital, salinan lunak
  • salinan digitaldigital copy of a document
  • salinan lunakdigital copy of a document
  • salinan elektronikdigital copy of a document
Māori kape matihiko
  • kape matihikodigital copy of a document
Swahili nakala tete
  • nakala tetedigital copy of a document
Thai สำเนาชั่วคราว, ฉบับไม่พิมพ์
  • สำเนาชั่วคราวdigital copy of a document
  • ฉบับไม่พิมพ์digital copy of a document
  • สำเนาอิเล็กทรอนิกส์digital copy of a document
Welsh copi meddal
  • copi meddaldigital copy of a document
Cite this entry
APA

soft copy. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/soft%20copy

MLA

“soft copy.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/soft%20copy. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “soft copy,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/soft%20copy.

Source: soft copy on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.