cartridge

American  

[kahr-trij] / ˈkɑr trɪdʒ /

noun

1. Also called cartouche.  a cylindrical case of pasteboard, metal, or the like, for holding a complete charge of powder, and often also the bullet or the shot for a rifle, machine gun, or other small arm.

2. a case containing any explosive charge, as for blasting.

3. any small container for powder, liquid, or gas, made for ready insertion into some device or mechanism.

   an ink cartridge for a pen.

4. Also called magazine.  Photography. a lightproof metal or plastic container for a roll of film, usually containing both the supply and take-up spools, as well as a pressure plate, for rapid loading without the necessity of threading the film.

5. Audio. pickup.

6. a flat, compact container enclosing an endless loop of audiotape, operated by inserting into a slot in a player.

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cartridge British  

/ ˈkɑːtrɪdʒ /

noun

1. a cylindrical, usually metal casing containing an explosive charge and often a bullet, for a rifle or other small arms

2. a case for an explosive, such as a blasting charge

3. an electromechanical transducer in the pick-up of a record player, usually either containing a piezoelectric crystal ( crystal cartridge ) or an electromagnet ( magnetic cartridge )

4. a container for magnetic tape that is inserted into a tape deck in audio or video systems. It is about four times the size of a cassette

5. Also called: cassette.   magazine.  photog a light-tight film container that enables a camera to be loaded and unloaded in normal light

6. computing a removable unit in a printer which contains black or coloured ink

7. computing a removable unit in a computer, such as an integrated circuit, containing software

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Etymology

Origin of cartridge

1570–80; earlier cartage, cartrage, alteration of cartouche

Example Sentences

Cartridge casings recovered near the Utah crime scene were matched through a federal database to an expended casing previously found during a search of Buzzard’s home in Vandenberg Village.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 26, 2025

In a statement to the Times, Federal Cartridge, a distributor of Lake City’s ammunition at the time of the Parkland shooting, condemned the “criminal misuse” of its products.

From Seattle Times • Nov. 12, 2023

Poly Technologies and Barnaul Cartridge Plant did not respond to requests for comment.

From New York Times • Jun. 23, 2023

Neither is the Novosibirsk Cartridge Plant, an ammunition manufacturer that calls itself “one of the leading engineering enterprises of the military-industrial complex of Russia.”

From Reuters • Jul. 1, 2022

Cartridge pouches, powder horns, and guns had been left against the tavern.

From "The Fighting Ground" by Avi

Related Words

• bullet
• cassette
• cylinder
• tube