publisher

American  

[puhb-li-sher] / ˈpʌb lɪ ʃər /

noun

• publishers
  plural

1. a person or company whose business is the publishing of books, periodicals, engravings, computer software, etc.

2. the business head of a newspaper organization or publishing house, commonly the owner or the representative of the owner.

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publisher British  

/ ˈpʌblɪʃə /

noun

1. a company or person engaged in publishing periodicals, books, music, etc

2. the proprietor of a newspaper or his representative

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• publishers
  plural

Etymology

Origin of publisher

1425–75; late Middle English: one who proclaims publicly; see publish, -er ¹

Explanation

A builder builds. A dancer dances. A publisher publishes — which is to say, oversees the printing, editing and, most importantly, the selling of books, magazines, websites, and even music. It's a matter of debate who is more important at a magazine, the editor or the publisher, but I'm sure you could get convincing arguments for either. The editor is in charge of content, while the publisher runs the business side of things and often owns the operation, too. The publisher of a newspaper is often also the owner. When a writer wants to get their book published — printed and sold — they send it to a publishing house, which may become the book's publisher.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

publisher publishers

In a statement issued by his publisher Simon & Schuster UK, Prof Arday's family said they were "in shock to have lost this amazing father, partner, brother, uncle and son".

From BBC ● Aug. 15, 2026

Dow Jones, the publisher of The Wall Street Journal, has a data partnership with Polymarket.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026

Its British publisher has insisted that "no allegations of plagiarism have been made with respect to" the memoir.

From Barron's ● Aug. 11, 2026

The publisher of Arday's memoir Great and Unfortunate Things is going ahead with its release in the US on Tuesday and in the UK on 27 August as planned.

From BBC ● Aug. 10, 2026

Just inside, a note identifying the publisher as R. L. Polk & Co, the name everyone uses when they talk about the compendium of businesses and people.

From "The Brightwood Code" by Monica Hesse

Agents, who act as the intermediary between authors and publishers, have found themselves on the front lines.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 17, 2026

When Sue Nyathi sent her debut novel The Polygamist to publishers, "they thought there was no market for the book" about a married Zimbabwean man and the women he seduces, she says.

From BBC ● Aug. 14, 2026

Apple paid publishers for access to content in earlier deals that included AI training rights, according to people familiar with those arrangements.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 12, 2026

The deals have provided meaningful revenue for a handful of news and magazine publishers.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 12, 2026

“I have not pursued mainstream publishers as hard as I should have,” he conceded.

From "Outliers" by Malcolm Gladwell

Related Words

• journalist
• magazine
• media
• newsperson
• reporter
• writer