cash register

American  

noun

cash registers plural

1. a business machine that indicates to customers the amounts of individual sales, has a money drawer from which to make change, records and totals receipts, and may automatically calculate the change due.

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cash register British  

noun

1. a till with a keyboard that operates a mechanism for displaying and adding the amounts of cash received in individual sales

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• cash registers
  plural

Etymology

Origin of cash register

An Americanism dating back to 1875–80

Example Sentences

They agreed to pay half a cent more at the cash register to fund buses, trains and pothole fillings in 2016.

From Los Angeles Times • May 12, 2026

As a man in his 60s, I’ve been to my share of bereavement services—but only one took place in front of a cash register.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 12, 2026

The car business is the cash register that funds the empire.

From MarketWatch • Jan. 15, 2026

Now they’re changing the currency on the cash register.

From MarketWatch • Dec. 16, 2025

When the meal was finished they stopped by the cash register for a few minutes.

From "The Heart is a Lonely Hunter" by Carson McCullers