kiosk

American  

[kee-osk, kee-osk] / ˈki ɒsk, kiˈɒsk /

noun

• kiosks
  plural

1. a small structure having one or more sides open, used as a newsstand, refreshment stand, bandstand, etc.

2. a thick, columnlike structure on which notices, advertisements, etc., are posted.

3. an interactive computer terminal available for public use, as one with internet access or site-specific information.

   Students use kiosks to look up campus events.

4. an open pavilion or summerhouse common in Turkey and Iran.

5. British. a telephone booth.

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kiosk British  

/ ˈkiːɒsk /

noun

1. a small sometimes movable booth from which cigarettes, newspapers, light refreshments, etc, are sold

2. a telephone box

3. a thick post on which advertisements are posted

4. (in Turkey, Iran, etc, esp formerly) a light open-sided pavilion

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• kiosks
  plural

Etymology

Origin of kiosk

First recorded in 1615–25; from French kiosque “stand in a public park,” ultimately from Turkish köşk “villa,” from Persian kūshk “palace, villa”

Explanation

A kiosk is a small booth or stall. Shopping malls and airports have retail kiosks that sell all sorts of things, ranging from cookies to cell phones to sunglasses to perfumes to newspapers to . . . well, really almost anything! You're probably familiar with retail kiosks, since they always seem to be located in highly visible areas of the mall, but there are other types of kiosks as well. Information kiosks provide helpful items to tourists, such as maps and pamphlets. You might also see electronic kiosks where you can buy tickets or get various types of information through videos or interactive presentations.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

kiosk kiosks

I zipped through to the TSA checkpoint at SFO without having to pass through one or two representatives and a kiosk.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 24, 2026

On a hot and humid afternoon last week when we visited their outlet, Jatinder and Anita Sabharwal turned up at the CarryMen's orange-and-white kiosk seeking to hire an assistant.

From BBC ● Jun. 3, 2026

One recent Friday, Leonidas Georgiou, 36, stepped up to the kiosk, brimming with enthusiasm.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 12, 2026

"If this goes on for another two or four months then our entire business will be finished," he said, sitting at the counter of his small jewellery kiosk.

From Barron's ● Apr. 21, 2026

There's a kiosk on the corner of Seventy-Fourth Street.

From "The Sky at Our Feet" by Nadia Hashimi

The reopening was packed with shoppers, store owners and residents, who milled about the refurbished center and enjoyed free drinks and food offered from kiosks.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 15, 2026

The registration kiosks at airports can be confusing —“Just how do I scan that passport properly?”—so the process takes time and lines form.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 12, 2026

That changed in 1996 when he was given a skeleton key that opened glass advertising boxes on the sides of phone booths and bus kiosks.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 8, 2026

Ticket offices or kiosks that are located on station platforms before the exit barriers, for example at Edinburgh Waverley or Glasgow Queen Street, will remain open.

From BBC ● Jul. 1, 2026

We sat in the back and watched the houses and kiosks go by.

From "A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier" by Ishmael Beah

Related Words

• booth
• newsstand
• stall