feeder
Americannoun
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feeders
plural
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a person or thing that supplies food or feeds something.
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a bin or boxlike device from which farm animals may eat, especially such a device designed to allow a number of chickens to feed simultaneously or to release a specific amount of feed at regular intervals.
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a person or thing that takes food or nourishment.
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a livestock animal that is fed an enriched diet to fatten it for market.
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a person or device that feeds a machine, printing press, etc.
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a tributary stream.
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Electricity. Also a conductor, or group of conductors, connecting primary equipment in an electric power system.
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British. a baby's bib.
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Theater Slang. straight man.
adjective
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being, functioning as, or serving as a feeder.
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pertaining to livestock to be fattened for market.
noun
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a person or thing that feeds or is fed
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a child's feeding bottle or bib
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agriculture a head of livestock being fattened for slaughter
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a person or device that feeds the working material into a system or machine
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a tributary channel, esp one that supplies a reservoir or canal with water
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a road, service, etc, that links secondary areas to the main traffic network
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( as modifier )
a feeder bus
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a transmission line connecting an aerial to a transmitter or receiver
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a power line for transmitting electrical power from a generating station to a distribution network
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Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of feeder
Middle English word dating back to 1350–1400; see origin at feed, -er 1
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.
See Examples For:
The company has modeled the economics, but this summer’s test will determine whether it expands the program to other crowded feeder lines.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 3, 2026
On Monday, the September contract for feeder cattle FCU26 — those that are fattened up for slaughter — fell 2.8% to end at $3.32 per pound in Chicago.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 28, 2026
Two traps that Soto set up outside his home — vertical, clear cylinders reminiscent of a hummingbird feeder — were filled with dead flies within days, he said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 23, 2026
In India, a big problem is the lack of enough feeder buses to handle last-mile connectivity, he says.
From BBC ● Apr. 19, 2026
He and his second wife, June, live in Wyckoff, a New Jersey suburb where he pampers fig trees and dutifully looks after a bird feeder shaped like the Parthenon.
From "Class Matters" by The New York Times
That lively string of bird feeders beside the nursing home seemed quietly heroic, like a line of lanterns burning brightly against the dusk.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 16, 2026
Honeybees were trained to visit the feeders, and the team monitored their behavior over several days.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 6, 2026
This includes things such as unsecured garbage cans, fallen fruit, bird feeders, pet food left outside and uncleaned grills.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 6, 2026
“International sales complement the domestic market, maximizing the value of every animal and providing incentive for ranchers and cattle feeders to expand their operations,” the U.S.
From Barron's ● May 12, 2026
Grandma looked out my window and watched the birds at their feeders for a few minutes.
From "Bye Forever, I Guess" by Jodi Meadows
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
