contributor
Americannoun
-
contributors
plural
-
a person who contributes money, assistance, etc.
-
a person who contributes an article, story, etc., to a newspaper, magazine, or the like.
noun
-
a person who contributes, esp one who writes for a newspaper or one who makes a donation to a cause, etc
-
something that is a factor in or is partly responsible for something
alcohol was a contributor to his death
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of contributor
1400–50; late Middle English contributour < Anglo-French. See contribute, -tor
Explanation
A contributor is someone who takes part in something or makes a contribution. Writers and people who donate money in particular are called contributors. Writers whose work is included in a book, magazine, or newspaper are called contributors. Some have specific titles like "contributing editor" or "contributing writer." If you give money for a cause or a company, that contribution also makes you a contributor. This word is used mainly for writing and donating, but it can be used in other cases for people who help with something. The surest way not to be called a contributor is to do nothing: contributors have to contribute.
Vocabulary lists containing contributor
"The Taming of the Shrew" by William Shakespeare, Act I
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"CLEP Principles of Management," Vocabulary from Chapter 3
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"The American Pageant," Vocabulary from Chapters 40-42
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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:
Michael Sincere is a MarketWatch contributor and author of several books, including “Understanding Stocks,” “Understanding Options” and “Help Your Child Build Wealth.”
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 15, 2026
Useless NFL gasbaggery is now a key contributor to the U.S.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 8, 2026
One contributor ruled out taking the exam in Istanbul, saying "going there is for the rich who can afford flights".
From Barron's ● Sep. 8, 2026
Other research has identified fructose as an important contributor to steatotic liver disease, a condition involving excess fat accumulation in the liver that affects about 30% of adults worldwide.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 6, 2026
“And now we turn to regular contributor Royal, for an update on how the new Wizarding order is affecting the Muggle world.”
From "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" by J.K. Rowling
“You do have individual contributors who got promoted to manager and have no idea how to actually manage, and are absolutely slowing things down and causing problems,” Butterworth says.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 17, 2026
The Kings called Melrose “one of the most influential figures” in team history, “but more importantly one of the most significant contributors to the growth of the game of hockey in the United States.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 10, 2026
Meta said Wednesday that the Community Notes in the US now had more than 1.4 million contributors, who produced more than 50,000 posts on Facebook, Instagram and Threads.
From Barron's ● Sep. 9, 2026
Since the spring revamp, Bilton has been rebuilding, adding New York Times opinion columnist Ross Douthat as a correspondent and Sebastian Junger, Gianna Toboni and Trevor Phillips as contributors.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 8, 2026
Would I want to write all the content or work with contributors?
From "All The Bright Places" by Jennifer Niven
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.
