facsimile number

Why Is It Called Facsimile? Facsimile comes from two Latin roots: facere, meaning “to make,” and simile, meaning “like.” Fax machines are so called because they copy and transmit facsimiles of documents, or faxes for short, over phone lines. Where does the word facsimile come from? Fac simile is a Latin phrase meaning “make similar.”