Edition or Addition? Two Words That Sound Alike and Share Nothing
An edition is one version of a published work. Addition is arithmetic. The mix-up is common in writing and easy to fix.
An edition is one published form of a work: a first edition, a paperback edition, the evening edition. Careless typing turns it into *addition*, a completely unrelated word about adding. If you can replace it with *version*, you want edition; if you can replace it with *extra*, you want addition.
- One published version of a book or paper. *The second edition, revised.*
- One issue of a broadcast or newspaper. *Tonight's edition of the programme.*
- A limited run of an object. *A limited edition print.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | edition | A new edition. |
| Plural | editions | Successive editions. |
| Related | edit | Edit the text. |
| Related | editor | The editor's note. |
| Confused with | addition | An addition to the family. |
How it is used in a sentence
- The library holds a first edition from 1847.First edition means the first printing of the first published form.
- Buy the latest edition; the law changed last year.Editions of textbooks matter for exactly this reason.
- It came out as a limited edition of five hundred.Limited edition names a fixed quantity.
Edition, impression, printing and version
- Edition — a form of the work with its own setting or substantial changes
- Impression / printing — a batch printed from the same setting
- Reprint — another run with no changes
- Version — the general word, used for software as well as books
- Addition — not in this family at all; it belongs to arithmetic
From Latin *editio*, a bringing forth or publishing, from *edere*, to give out. It shares its root with *edit* and *editor*, and none of them are related to *add*, which comes from Latin *addere*.
Is a reprint a new edition?
Not usually. A reprint is the same edition printed again; a new edition means the text or the setting has changed.
How do I remember the difference from *addition*?
Edition holds edit inside it, and both are about publishing. Addition holds add.