projector

American  

[pruh-jek-ter] / prəˈdʒɛk tər /

noun

projectors plural

1. an apparatus for throwing an image on a screen, as a motion-picture projector or magic lantern.

2. a device for projecting a beam of light.

3. a person who forms projects or plans.

4. Archaic. a person who devises underhanded or unsound plans; schemer.

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projector British  

/ prəˈdʒɛktə /

noun

1. Full name: slide projector.  an optical instrument that projects an enlarged image of individual slides onto a screen or wall

2. Full name: film projector.   cine projector.  an optical instrument in which a strip of film is wound past a lens at a fixed speed so that the frames can be viewed as a continuously moving sequence on a screen or wall

3. a device for projecting a light beam

4. a person who devises projects

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• projectors
  plural

Etymology

Origin of projector

First recorded in 1590–1600; project + -or ²

Explanation

A projector is a machine you use for showing movies or images on a screen. In the days before digital cameras, tourists would frequently take pictures with slide film that they could show their friends later with a projector. Today, most theaters use digital equipment to show movies, although a few are still filmed on actual film and require an old-fashioned projector. While these days a teacher might use a large television and a laptop to show the class an educational film, they would once have had to use a projector and a film strip. Projector comes from the verb project, "cast an image," from Latin roots pro-, "forward," and iacere, "to throw."

Example Sentences

But she drew the line at his request for a projector showing the Knicks game against the Cleveland Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference Finals.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 12, 2026

There is no sign outside, but follow the noise inside to find the Host arrive on stage from a door hidden behind a hypnotic dayglow projector visual.

From Los Angeles Times • May 18, 2026

Elsewhere on the first floor, there is a magnificent movie room that is adorned in red velvet and boasts a fireplace and large projector.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 17, 2026

In his downtime he would travel by horse and buggy across Pennsylvania and neighboring states with what he called his "exhibition": a new-fangled Edison phonograph, a magic lantern slide projector and later on, movies.

From Barron's • Apr. 13, 2026

He pointed toward the spot where the overhead projector had once stood.

From "The World According to Humphrey" by Betty G. Birney