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

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Etymology

Origin of contributor

1400–50; late Middle English contributour < Anglo-French. See contribute, -tor

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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

Oksana Grytsenko is a contributor to The Wall Street Journal covering the war in Ukraine.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026

The leading contributor, as my colleague Queenie Wong has reported, is Google co-founder Sergey Brin, who claims to have moved out of the state, which might enable him to avoid the tax.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 16, 2026

One possible contributor involves mitochondria, the tiny structures inside cells that convert nutrients into usable energy.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 15, 2026

With more than 10,000 published pieces, mostly into Spanish, Portuguese and English, OKA is, Zimmerman says, the single largest contributor of translated articles to the collaborative online encyclopedia.

From BBC ● Oct. 13, 2026

Don’t you want to be a contributor to our economy?

From "Beauty Queens" by Libba Bray

Other contributors included Ian Dechene, who worked as research staff on the project and is now a software engineer, and Roberto Castro, a Penn State doctoral student jointly advised by Piazza and Rubenson.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 14, 2026

Smoke from forest fires, crop burning and cooking are significant contributors to Africa's air pollution while Saharan dust travels as far as Europe.

From Barron's ● Sep. 30, 2026

The city’s matching fund program allows candidates to receive $6 in public funds for every $1 they receive from local contributors.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 25, 2026

We can all be net contributors, but you can’t solve homelessness by yourself.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 25, 2026

“The market research from Zach and Mrs. Hodges indicates that fifty-nine percent of the contributors to GoFundMe are now young women ages twenty-four and under.”

From "A Heart in a Body in the World" by Deb Caletti

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Related Words

• donor
• giver
• patron

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