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definitions

consumer

[ kuh n-soo-mer ]
/ kənˈsu mər /
|

noun

a person or thing that consumes.
Economics. a person or organization that uses a commodity or service.
Ecology. an organism, usually an animal, that feeds on plants or other animals.

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Nearby words

  1. consumable,
  2. consumables,
  3. consume,
  4. consumed,
  5. consumedly,
  6. consumer advocate,
  7. consumer credit,
  8. consumer durable,
  9. consumer goods,
  10. consumer packaged goods

Origin of consumer

1375–1425 for earlier sense “squanderer,” 1525–35 for current senses; Middle English; see consume, -er1
Related formscon·sum·er·ship, nounan·ti·con·sum·er, noun, adjectivenon·con·sum·er, adjective, nounpre·con·sum·er, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for non-consumer

  • Without Mr. Flack, at the cafes, he felt too much a non-consumer.

    The Reverberator|Henry James

  • And there it reproached its maker and its non-consumer in the morning.

    It Never Can Happen Again|William De Morgan
British Dictionary definitions for non-consumer

consumer

/ (kənˈsjuːmə) /

noun

a person who acquires goods and services for his or her own personal needsCompare producer (def. 6)
a person or thing that consumes
(usually plural) ecology an organism, esp an animal, within a community that feeds upon plants or other animalsSee also decomposer, producer (def. 8)
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Word Origin and History for non-consumer

consumer

n.

early 15c., "one who squanders or wastes," agent noun from consume. In economic sense, "one who uses up goods or articles" (opposite of producer) from 1745. Consumer goods is attested from 1890. In U.S., consumer price index calculated since 1919, tracking "changes in the prices paid by urban consumers for a representative basket of goods and services" [Bureau of Labor Statistics]; abbreviation CPI is attested by 1971.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
Science definitions for non-consumer

consumer

[ kən-sōō′mər ]

A heterotrophic organism that feeds on other organisms in a food chain.♦ Herbivores that feed on green plants and detritivores that feed on decaying matter are called primary consumers. Carnivores that feed on herbivores or detritivores are called secondary consumers, while those that feed on other carnivores are called tertiary consumers. Compare producer.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Culture definitions for non-consumer

consumer

Someone who purchases a good for personal use.

The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.