distributor

Or dis·trib·ut·er

[dih-strib-yuh-ter]

noun

1. a person or thing that distributes.

2. Commerce.

   1. a person, firm, etc., engaged in the general distribution or marketing of some article or class of goods.

   2. a wholesaler who has exclusive rights to market, within a given territory, the goods of a manufacturer or company.

3. Automotive, Machinery.,  a device in a multicylinder engine that distributes the igniting voltage to the spark plugs in a definite sequence.

4. Printing.

   1. (in a press) one of the rollers for spreading ink on the table, rolling it to a proper consistency, and transferring it to rollers that ink the form or plate.

   2. Also called distributor bar. (in a Linotype) a bar with keylike cuts along its length, for sorting matrices into their proper magazines after type has been cast.

distributor

/ dɪˈstrɪbjʊtə /

noun

1. a person or thing that distributes

2. a wholesaler or middleman engaged in the distribution of a category of goods, esp to retailers in a specific area

3. the device in a petrol engine that distributes the high-tension voltage to the sparking plugs in the sequence of the firing order

Other Word Forms

• subdistributor noun
• underdistributor noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of distributor¹

From the Late Latin word distribūtor, dating back to 1520–30. See distribute, -tor

Example Sentences

Brad Jacobs, the billionaire CEO of building-products distributor QXO, devoted a chapter in his book to “electric meetings,” noting many gatherings are deathly dull and full of passive listeners.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

The rise was driven by 15.1 billion euros in net inflows, mainly from third-party distributors in its retail segments as well as fixed income and insurer mandates in its institutional division.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Many of Garg's songs cannot be uploaded online without risking copyright violation owing to a lack of clarity over their ownership, which is scattered among a complicated network of producers, distributors and music labels.

Read more on BBC

Depletions, a key metric that tracks sales by distributors to retailers and is considered a proxy for demand, declined 3% as volumes were pressured across the beer industry, Chief Executive Officer Jim Koch said.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

When a small maker and distributor of auto parts can turn itself into a financial firm with some $10 billion of debt without its lenders paying much attention, something smells.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• dealer 
• trader