dispenser

[dih-spen-ser]

noun

1. a person or thing that dispenses.

2. a container, package, device, or vending machine for holding and dispensing something in small amounts, as facial tissue, paper cups, or candy.

dispenser

/ dɪˈspɛnsə /

noun

1. a device, such as a vending machine, that automatically dispenses a single item or a measured quantity

2. a person or thing that dispenses

Word History and Origins

Origin of dispenser¹

Middle English word dating back to 1250–1300; dispense, -er ¹

Example Sentences

Most Americans have been hearing tales of Pentagon woe—late, expensive new aircraft carriers; an 8,000% price markup on a soap dispenser inside a C-17 bathroom.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Mr. Easterly is not a friend of rich-world technocrats or top-down dispensers of aid and omniscience who frequently fail to consult the very people—the Third World poor—for whose salvation they get paid handsomely.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

“We cannot be cash dispensers if we feel that our basic security is not guaranteed.”

Read more on Los Angeles Times

It is also used legitimately in the catering industry as a propellant in whipped cream dispensers.

Read more on BBC

In addition, customers who have a water dispenser on their refrigerator should flush the device or five minutes; make and discard three batches of ice cubes and clean the ice bin with a disinfectant.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• banker 
• merchant 
• retailer www.thesaurus.com
• trader 
• trafficker www.thesaurus.com
• vendor 
• wholesaler