contributor

American  

[kuhn-trib-yuh-ter] / kənˈtrɪb jə tər /

noun

• contributors
  plural

1. a person who contributes money, assistance, etc.

2. a person who contributes an article, story, etc., to a newspaper, magazine, or the like.

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contributor British  

/ kənˈtrɪbjʊtə /

noun

1. a person who contributes, esp one who writes for a newspaper or one who makes a donation to a cause, etc

2. something that is a factor in or is partly responsible for something

   alcohol was a contributor to his death

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• noncontributor
  noun
• contributorial
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• contributors
  plural

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.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

contributor contributors

Labor costs are muted and have not been a big contributor to rising prices since the pandemic.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 19, 2026

For the Amicus bonus episode, Dahlia unpacks the election mayhem happening in Missouri with Madiba K. Dennie, deputy editor and senior contributor at Balls and Strikes.

From Slate ● Sep. 17, 2026

Useless NFL gasbaggery is now a key contributor to the U.S.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 8, 2026

Thompson, a rookie who ran the fastest 40-yard dash in the NFL scouting combine, has impressed with his speed and could be a sleeper contributor in space.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 7, 2026

The fire marshals and bomb squad pick through the burned-out section in the back that serves as an annex for the office, where we keep voting registration and contributor records.

From "Native Speaker" by Chang-rae Lee

Contrary to police claims, the DNA was not a conclusive match for Oxford and Walters; it indicated only that they could not be excluded as possible contributors.

From Slate ● Sep. 17, 2026

They are also less likely to suffer from long-term health conditions and joint problems that are major contributors to sickness absence.

From BBC ● Sep. 15, 2026

"Credible research suggests that community notes can only be effective when contributors can rely on accurate, ethically produced, fact-checked journalism and other high-quality sources when drafting their notes," Chetwynd said.

From Barron's ● Sep. 9, 2026

Grandparents can contribute too, but the $5,000 annual cap is shared across all contributors combined.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 2, 2026

Topic-then-comment and given-then-new orderings are major contributors to coherence, the feeling that one sentence flows into the next rather than jerking the reader around.

From "The Sense of Style" by Steven Pinker

Related Words

• donor
• giver
• patron