client

American  

[klahy-uhnt] / ˈklaɪ ənt /

noun

• clients
  plural

1. a person or group that uses the professional advice or services of a lawyer, accountant, advertising agency, architect, etc.

2. a person who is receiving the benefits, services, etc., of a social welfare agency, a government bureau, etc.

3. a customer.

4. anyone under the patronage of another; a dependent.

5. Computers. a computer or an application on a computer that communicates with a remote server.

   Exit the program before installing the patch to update the client.

6. client state.

7. (in ancient Rome) a plebeian who lived under the patronage of a patrician.

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adjective

1. being a regular customer.

   a client company.

2. economically, and often militarily, dependent upon a more prosperous, more powerful nation.

client British  

/ ˈklaɪənt /

noun

1. a person, company, etc, that seeks the advice of a professional man or woman

2. a customer

3. a person who is registered with or receiving services or financial aid from a welfare agency

4. computing a program or work station that requests data or information from a server

5. a person depending on another's patronage

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client Scientific  

/ klī′ənt /

1. A program that runs on a personal computer or workstation connected to a computer network and requests information from a file server.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• cliental
  adjective
• nonclient
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• clients
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of client

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Latin client-, stem of cliēns “person seeking the protection or influence of someone powerful”; perhaps akin to clīnāre “to bend” ( see incline)

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Explanation

If you pay for something, you are a client. If you pay to get your dog groomed, you are a client of the dog groomer (and so is your pooch). If you shop at a certain store or use the services of a particular business, then you are a client of that store or business. If you want to go into acting, for example, you'll need to become a client of a talent agent. In computer terms, a client is a computer that makes a request of another computer, called a server. The term client is especially used in networks where one server may handle multiple requests from multiple clients.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

client clients

In a statement outside court, Alexandrou described his client as an "incredible father".

From BBC ● Oct. 16, 2026

Banga has argued in the past that its work should be driven by client countries' demands, not its own prescriptions.

From Barron's ● Oct. 16, 2026

In December, another client was arrested leaving the Rancho Cucamonga courthouse.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 15, 2026

The ride-hailing company is establishing a new chauffeuring brand, dubbed Alcove, that caters to demand for full days of executive travel between client meetings, conferences and flights, Chief Executive David Risher said in an interview.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 15, 2026

Although Bogason warned Estimo that his statements could be considered slanderous and that he should accept that the case was closed for their client Jinky, Estimo would not resign.

From "Endgame" by Frank Brady

The Friday afternoon hearing was sparked by Xuan and Zhang’s attorneys attempts to have their clients released on their own recognizance.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 17, 2026

But it added that brokers, insurers and clients will need to work together to manage “genuinely novel exposures…around agentic AI and autonomous decision-making.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026

The moves have removed risk from the balance sheet “and transformed EchoStar into an investment company with meaningful further opportunities to unlock value,” he wrote in a note to clients on Friday while relaunching J.P.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 16, 2026

For some context: Lumen is a legacy telecom company that Johnson has been busy transforming into a network-as-a-service platform for enterprise clients, including hyperscalers.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026

I carefully fold the cash into my pocket and pull out my business spiral from my backpack to write down the names of my new clients.

From "Marcus Vega Doesn't Speak Spanish" by Pablo Cartaya

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Related Words

• applicant
• buyer
• consumer
• patient
• patron
• shopper

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