cartridge
Americannoun
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cartridges
plural
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Also called cartouche. a cylindrical case of pasteboard, metal, or the like, for holding a complete charge of powder, and often also the bullet or the shot for a rifle, machine gun, or other small arm.
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a case containing any explosive charge, as for blasting.
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any small container for powder, liquid, or gas, made for ready insertion into some device or mechanism.
an ink cartridge for a pen.
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Also called magazine. Photography. a lightproof metal or plastic container for a roll of film, usually containing both the supply and take-up spools, as well as a pressure plate, for rapid loading without the necessity of threading the film.
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Audio. pickup.
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a flat, compact container enclosing an endless loop of audiotape, operated by inserting into a slot in a player.
noun
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a cylindrical, usually metal casing containing an explosive charge and often a bullet, for a rifle or other small arms
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a case for an explosive, such as a blasting charge
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an electromechanical transducer in the pick-up of a record player, usually either containing a piezoelectric crystal ( crystal cartridge ) or an electromagnet ( magnetic cartridge )
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a container for magnetic tape that is inserted into a tape deck in audio or video systems. It is about four times the size of a cassette
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Also called: cassette, magazine. photog a light-tight film container that enables a camera to be loaded and unloaded in normal light
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computing a removable unit in a printer which contains black or coloured ink
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computing a removable unit in a computer, such as an integrated circuit, containing software
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of cartridge
1570–80; earlier cartage, cartrage, alteration of cartouche
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:
Schick revolutionized shaving with injector razors and multiblades in a single cartridge, slugging it out in the marketplace for decades with rival shaving giant Gillette.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 16, 2026
Founded in 2001 as an inkjet cartridge maker, it rebranded as Innovative Beverage Group six years later.
From Barron's ● Jun. 15, 2026
However, they provided little evidence to support that claim, other than that the shotgun held a spent cartridge in its barrel.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 30, 2026
The device contains a swappable cartridge that needs to be replaced after about three months.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 26, 2025
We’d been classmates in fourth grade, and one time he’d given me a fountain pen, the kind you had to load with a cartridge.
From "The Kite Runner" by Khaled Hosseini
Another experiment fits bees into cartridges that are plugged into handheld devices.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 30, 2026
When disposable vape cartridges are put in garbage or recycling bins, they can be crushed by garbage trucks and sorting equipment at waste facilities.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 27, 2026
The factory site has a long military tradition, having made equipment for the Nazi army, then cartridges for the communist regime.
From Barron's ● Dec. 19, 2025
To validate the technology, the researchers sent DASH® analyzers and DASH® HCV cartridges to colleagues at Johns Hopkins University.
From Science Daily ● Dec. 11, 2025
Caesar unclasps his leather holster, inspects his guns and cartridges.
From "Will’s Race for Home" by Jewell Parker Rhodes
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