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Synonyms

demo

1 American  
[dem-oh] / ˈdɛm oʊ /

noun

plural

demos
  1. demonstration.

  2. demonstrator.

  3. a recording of a new song or of one performed by an unknown singer or singing group, distributed to disc jockeys, recording companies, etc., to demonstrate the merits of the song or performer.

  4. demolition.

    He does flooring and demo for a living.


verb (used with object)

demoed, demoing
  1. to try out or exhibit the use of (a product, process, or the like).

    You can demo the game without downloading or buying it.

  2. to record (a song) to demonstrate the merits of the song or performer.

Demo 2 American  
[dem-oh] / ˈdɛm oʊ /

noun

Informal.

plural

Demos
  1. a member of the Democratic Party; Democrat.


demo- 3 American  
  1. a combining form occurring in loanwords from Greek, where it meant “people” (democratic ); on this model, used in the formation of compound words (demography ).


demo 1 British  
/ ˈdɛməʊ /

noun

  1. short for demonstration

    1. a demonstration record or tape, used for audition purposes

    2. a demonstration of a prototype system

  2. short for demonstrator

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

demo- 2 British  

combining form

  1. indicating people or population

    demography

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of demo1

1935–40; by shortening; -o

Origin of Demo2

An Americanism dating back to 1785–95

Origin of demo-3

< Greek dēmo-, combining form of dêmos

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.

He estimates that roughly half the artists he works with represent themselves, often reaching out directly after meeting him at shows or sending demos.

From Los Angeles Times

Google’s commercial for its AI tool Gemini fared better than some others by following the company’s classic formula of combining product demos with emotional portraits of individual lives, she added.

From The Wall Street Journal

He added that it’s “a bit ironic” that the software selloff has been triggered by product launches and demos from Anthropic, Google and OpenAI.

From MarketWatch

“Are you here to do another baking demo?”

From Literature

The anti-government demos were sparked by economic grievances in late December, but soon turned into mass street rallies against the Islamic republic.

From Barron's