songwriter
Americannoun
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of songwriter
Explanation
A musician who composes tunes and writes lyrics is a songwriter. Many famous musical performers, from Elvis Presley to Rihanna, have relied on songwriters to write their biggest hits. While composers write music and lyricists focus on just the words, songwriters do both. If you have a decent singing voice, play the guitar, and love coming up with your own lyrics and melodies, you should think about being a singer-songwriter. Or team up with another musician and write songs together, the way John Lennon and Paul McCartney did, sharing credit as songwriters for many of the Beatles' most famous songs.
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:
"Bill was a multi-talented celebrity -- wildlife presenter, broadcaster, comedian, writer, songwriter, musician and conservationist," his agent David Foster said in a statement.
From Barron's ● Jul. 27, 2026
The band's founding member and main songwriter, Justin Currie, explained in 2010 that the band's name "was invented to be meaningless – basically a corruption of the Greek name 'Dimitri'."
From BBC ● Jul. 15, 2026
When a song plays on AM or FM radio in Belgium, Germany, Spain or nearly any other developed country, both the songwriter and the performers get paid royalties.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 14, 2026
For “Sweet Fortune,” Beatty maintained that collaborative spirit, welcoming Clairo and the songwriter Amy Allen into his sessions; players on the album include the drummer Matt Chamberlain and the guitarist Meg Duffy.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 24, 2026
Okay, I am also very impressed that you Googled your way to Elliott Smith, who was quite possibly the greatest songwriter since Lennon and McCartney.
From "Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda" by Becky Albertalli
"So overlooked but so accomplished as musicians and songwriters, and with an exceptional frontman in Marti Pellow," she said.
From BBC ● Jul. 15, 2026
Why are songwriters so eager to say, “I channeled this — it just came through me”? Because it’s the truth.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 8, 2026
Composers and songwriters would receive payments irregularly at best; performers and venues had to contend with multiple agencies seeking money.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 5, 2026
Canadian singer Alanis Morissette, inescapable in the 1990s, and American record producer Walter Afanasieff were also among the total of nine songwriters joining the Hall of Fame this year.
From Barron's ● Jun. 11, 2026
But the growing commercial confidence of Broadway and Hollywood musicals and of their songwriters blossomed at a time when classical music was struggling to find a sense of purpose beyond mere experimentation.
From "The Story of Music" by Howard Goodall
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.
