provider
AmericanOther Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of provider
Explanation
A provider is a person who gives someone something they need. If your parents both have jobs so they can feed you and buy you what you need, you can call them providers. Your mom's a provider if she works so she can care for you, put food on the table, and send you to school. There are other types of providers as well, although they all give you something you need, often a service. Your school is a provider of education, and the pharmacy around the corner is a provider of medication, makeup, and magazines. It's increasingly common to call your main doctor a "primary care provider."
Vocabulary lists containing provider
Father's Day Words
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"Principles of Business," Vocabulary from Chapter 5
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"A Raisin in the Sun," "My Father is a Simple Man," and "My Mother Pieced Quilts"
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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.
SpaceX has pushed to become a dominant in-flight internet provider, reaching deals with United, Southwest and Alaska Air.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 29, 2026
His office’s investigation into a homelessness service provider, he said, became a catalyst for federal wire fraud charges in January amid allegations a man took $23 million in public funds.
From Los Angeles Times • May 29, 2026
SLB, the world’s largest oilfield-services provider, is up 52% so far in 2026, outperforming the energy sector.
From Barron's • May 28, 2026
It is now Britain's largest coffee provider, with more outlets than Costa.
From BBC • May 28, 2026
I want to believe it’s a problem with the provider, and not with the stations themselves.
From "Dry" by Neal Shusterman and Jarrod Shusterman
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.
