scanner

American  

[skan-er] / ˈskæn ər /

noun

• scanners
  plural

1. a person or thing that scans.

2. Also called optical reader.  Also called optical scanner.  Computers. a device that scans printed, handwritten, barcode, or other visual data and encodes it into digital format.

3. Photography. any device for exposing an image on film, a sensitized plate, etc., by tracing light along a series of many closely spaced parallel lines.

4. (in aerial photography) a device for estimating the ratio of aircraft speed to aircraft altitude.

5. a photoelectric device for scanning a picture to determine automatically the density of the hue or value in each area for transmission by wire or radio or for preparation of color process printing plates.

6. a computer-aided electronic system using photoelectric cells to separate copy, as color illustrations, into its primary colors, correct color copy, and produce a set of color separations ready for proofing or printing.

7. Radio. a radio receiver, used especially by police, firefighters, and the press, that continuously tunes to preselected frequencies, broadcasting any signal that it detects.

8. Medicine/Medical, Biology. a device for examining a body, organ, tissue, or other biologically active material.

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scanner British  

/ ˈskænə /

noun

1. a person or thing that scans

2. a device, usually electronic, used to measure or sample the distribution of some quantity or condition in a particular system, region, or area

3. an aerial or similar device designed to transmit or receive signals, esp radar signals, inside a given solid angle of space, thus allowing a particular region to be scanned

4. any of various devices used in medical diagnosis to obtain an image of an internal organ or part See CAT scanner nuclear magnetic resonance scanner ultrasound scanner

5. informal a television outside broadcast vehicle

6. short for optical scanner

7. printing an electronic device which scans printed material and converts it to digital form

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• scanners
  plural

Etymology

Origin of scanner

First recorded in 1550–60; scan + -er ¹

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

scanner scanners

A robotic voice tells me to stay still and close my eyes as I stand in a huge curved scanner while classical music plays in the background.

From BBC ● Aug. 8, 2026

Police scanner audio obtained by news outlets showed emergency responders arriving at Graham’s Capitol Hill home on Saturday around 8:30 p.m. for a report of chest pains; CPR was underway roughly 25 minutes later.

From Salon ● Jul. 13, 2026

NBC News reported that emergency services responded to a call for "cardiac arrest" at Graham's Capitol Hill home on Saturday night, according to police scanner audio obtained by NBC and other outlets.

From Barron's ● Jul. 12, 2026

As tissues respond to those signals, the scanner collects the information needed to generate an image.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 10, 2026

Then he left, smiled in the direction of the ’visor scanner, still playing away—waved to the reporters, and shouted, “We’ll have something for you tomorrow, boys. No kidding.”

From "I, Robot" by Isaac Asimov

Chaves maintained close ties to the U.S., successfully lobbying the Biden administration for high-tech antidrug scanners.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 27, 2026

More police forces are adopting A.I. facial scanners; the tech is being piloted in schools, buses, and stores as well.

From Slate ● Aug. 5, 2026

Today, lasers are used throughout modern society, from supermarket barcode scanners to vision correction procedures and advanced scientific instruments.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 5, 2026

It comes amid reports the extreme heat has caused problems with IT systems, cancer equipment, lab testing and scanners.

From BBC ● Jun. 25, 2026

Straight ahead curved a sparkling archway that reminded Aru of the body scanners at airports.

From "Aru Shah and the End of Time" by Roshani Chokshi