printer
Americannoun
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printers
plural
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a person or thing that prints, especially a person whose occupation is printing.
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Computers. an output device that produces a paper copy of alphanumeric or graphic data.
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an instrument that automatically records telegraphic messages by means of a printing mechanism activated by incoming signals.
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Movies. a photographic machine through which either the negative or positive of a master print can be run, together with unexposed film, to make a duplicate.
noun
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a person or business engaged in printing
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a machine or device that prints
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computing an output device for printing results on paper
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of printer
Explanation
A printer might be a person whose job is to make copies of printed material, or a machine that’s hooked up to a computer and prints on paper. With a 3D printer, you can even “print” a spatula! A 3D printer creates a replica of an image sent to it from a computer, whether it’s a car part or a spatula. Most people have the regular kind of printer, though, that they use to print things like essays or articles. Or, you might hire a printer to make your wedding invitations. The original printers, circa 1500, were people who operated a moveable type printing press (invented in 1450), printing books and other texts in small quantities.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
His collection began when the last commercial letterpress printer in the city closed in 2012 and he intervened to prevent the historic equipment being melted down.
From BBC ● Aug. 1, 2026
One of his latest creations, an animatronic hand, clutches when he pulls a trigger that he built using a 3-D printer.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 19, 2026
So spontaneously that it had not even been printed out, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio had to scramble to source a printer from within the grand palace.
From Barron's ● Jun. 19, 2026
Even the most extreme money printer is likely to concede that something which cannot continue forever, won’t.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 9, 2026
“I made a copy on my dad’s printer last night.”
From "George" by Alex Gino
The technique has only survived through private collectors and artisan printers like Nick Hand, who runs the Department of Small Works in Bristol.
From BBC ● Aug. 1, 2026
The printers, the bookshops, the guesthouses and taverns, they followed.
From Salon ● Jun. 23, 2026
Sales of emerging categories including collectibles, 3D printers, and glasses embedded with artificial-intelligence features also doubled year-over-year, the company said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 28, 2026
Nicotine pouches, televisions, shoes, printers, data center cooling equipment, speakers and skin care cosmetics were among the goods recovered, according to a statement released by the Sheriff’s Department.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 1, 2026
Open boxes contain stacks of paper from old dot matrix printers, detailing the expenses and income of the Martin-Gale Mortgage Corp.
From "Paper Towns" by John Green
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
