documentarian

noun

doc·​u·​men·​tar·​i·​an ˌdä-kyə-mən-ˈter-ē-ən How to pronounce documentarian (audio)
-ˌmen-, 
-kyü-
: one who makes a documentary

Examples of documentarian in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
That is one of many truths expressed by the films of American documentarian Robert Greene, whose work for the past couple of decades has explored the thin line between fiction and reality. — Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 5 Sep. 2026 Does this first narrative feature from accomplished documentarian Lance Oppenheim draw new conclusions? — David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 5 Sep. 2026 Once lauded for her exploration of virtual worlds, the artist has emerged as one of our best documentarians of the real one. — Pablo Larios, Artforum, 1 Sep. 2026 When Phoebe Hunt, a documentarian for Tempus Tours, discovers that a real estate heiress who didn’t return from a journey is actually a suspicious woman from Phoebe’s past, Phoebe races to stop history from being rewritten. — Monitor Reviewers, Christian Science Monitor, 21 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for documentarian

Word History

Etymology

documentary entry 2

First Known Use

1943, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of documentarian was in 1943

Rhymes for documentarian

See All Rhymes for documentarian

Browse Nearby Words

documentalist
documentarian
documentarily
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Documentarian.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/documentarian. Accessed 7 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of gist

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

A List of Most Commonly Confused Words

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

Stay Woke

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Words of the Week - Sept. 4
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

The Longest Long Words List

Stay Woke
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
anagrams on a chalk board
Word Builder Quiz Vol. 2 Pick the letter that when added to a word will ma...
See All