adding machine

See more synonyms for adding machine on Thesaurus.com

noun

a machine capable of adding numbers and sometimes capable of performing the other arithmetic functions of subtraction, multiplication, and division: such machines are now obsolescent, having been replaced in most applications by electronic calculators.

Origin of adding machine

An Americanism dating back to 1870–75

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for adding machine

Historical Examples

But I could hug you for wanting to be a man, not an adding-machine!
The Book of Susan
Lee Wilson Dodd
These he read off to Speyer, who in turn pressed the proper keys on the adding-machine––an endless, tedious, irritating task.
The Wall Street Girl
Frederick Orin Bartlett
To his marrow he was systematic; he was as definite as an adding-machine, as practical as a cash register.
Queed
Henry Sydnor Harrison

British Dictionary definitions for adding machine

adding machine

noun

a mechanical device, operated manually or electrically, for adding and often subtracting, multiplying, and dividing

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

adding machine

Origin of .css-1fxfie5{font-size:22px;}@media (max-width:768px){.css-1fxfie5{font-size:18px;margin:0 10px 10px 0;word-break:break-all;word-wrap:break-word;-webkit-hyphens:auto;-moz-hyphens:auto;-ms-hyphens:auto;hyphens:auto;line-height:22px;}}adding machine

Examples from the Web for adding machine

Historical Examples

But I could hug you for wanting to be a man, not an adding-machine!

These he read off to Speyer, who in turn pressed the proper keys on the adding-machine––an endless, tedious, irritating task.

To his marrow he was systematic; he was as definite as an adding-machine, as practical as a cash register.

adding machine

Origin of adding machine