In the past century, numerous bamboo and silk (paleography) manuscripts of the Qin-Han dynasties were unearthed. These discoveries contributed to the burgeonging research into ancient manuscript typology. However, the terminology employed in the researches has not yet been clearly defined. Even the delineation between what might and what might not be called a "book" is still left vague and confusing. This article thus initiates research into the significance of the term "書 (texts/book)" from the point of view of ancient Chinese manuscript studies. There are three stages: firstly, through the definitions given by dictionaries to reveal, in general, the concepts embedded in the word within the Chinese context; secondly, a brief review on the usage of the word in ancient literature from both the previously held and the newly unearthed; and thirdly, an overview of the opinions currently suggested by scholars. This is then followed by an analysis of the scholars' assertions in categorizing the ancient manuscripts. This article sets out the circumstances as: in pre-Qin era, the word "書" was the generic term for all the manuscripts including documents recording public or political affairs; statements, events, theories; and letters. The purposes of the former two groups of writings were generally for "passing around the nobility" and "passing down to descendants". As to the methods of producing the manuscripts, there were various approaches such as "writing on bamboo and silk", "engraving on metal or stone", and "curving on family possesions". However, modern scholars tend to classify the ancient manuscripts according to various properties such as the medium, the recording method, the physical material, the purpose of writing, the recipients, the content, and the historical value attached. This article therefore highlights some important issues involved due to the discrepancies between the ancient and the modern usages of the same character.