Meaning & use
white paper
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Meanings
nouncountable
An official report that explains a policy or proposal and gives detailed reasons for it.
Grammar: Countable: you can say a white paper, two white papers, or the government's white paper.
Patterns
- a white paper on something
- publish/issue a white paper
- a government white paper
The government published a white paper on health care reform last month.
The white paper recommends raising the minimum wage over five years.
nouncountablebusinesstechnical
A detailed report from a company that explains a product, technology, or problem to customers or experts.
Grammar: Countable and common in business and technology writing; often followed by on or about.
Patterns
- a white paper on something
- write a white paper
- a technical white paper
The software company offers a free white paper on cloud security.
Our team wrote a white paper explaining the new payment system.
Word forms
| plural | white papers |
|---|
Common combinations
- publish a white paper
- The ministry will publish a white paper on education next week.
- a white paper on something
- She read a white paper on renewable energy.
- a government white paper
- The government white paper sets out its plans for housing.
- issue a white paper
- The bank issued a white paper about digital currencies.
Synonyms and how they differ
- report
- A general word for any written account; a white paper is specifically official or policy-focused and often longer.
- policy document
- Similar in meaning, but it emphasizes the policy content rather than the formal published format.
Commonly confused: white paper or blank paper?
white paper vs blank paper
A blank paper is an empty sheet with nothing written on it; a white paper is a written official report.
Practice
The government will ______ a white paper on climate policy next month.
Choose one answer.
Publish collocates with white paper to mean officially release it. Say, speak, and tell cannot take white paper as an object in this sense.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “white paper”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.