The History of ‘Stereotype,' Written on Metal Plates

In Word Through The Times, the evolution of the word ‘stereotype’ is traced. The New York Times first used the word in 1858 when reporting on the arrest of a young man accused of stealing stereotype plates. Stereotype printing, which involved using metal plates to transfer text and images, was credited to William Ged in 1725. The word ‘stereotype’ was coined later by Firmin Didot in the late 18th century. The printing method was adopted by newspapers, including The Times, due to its efficiency. A fire in The Times’s stereotype room in 1959 momentarily halted production. Over time, ‘stereotype’ gained a figurative meaning of ‘something constantly repeated’ and later became associated with oversimplified ideas. The Times first used ‘stereotype’ in a figurative sense in a 1925 film review.