recorder

American  

[ri-kawr-der] / rɪˈkɔr dər /

noun

recorders plural

1. a person who records, especially as an official duty.

2. English Law.

   1. a judge in a city or borough court.

   2. (formerly) the legal adviser of a city or borough, with responsibility for keeping a record of legal actions and local customs.

3. a recording or registering apparatus or device.

4. a device for recording sound, images, or data by electrical, magnetic, or optical means.

5. an end-blown flute having a fipple mouthpiece, eight finger holes, and a soft, mellow tone.

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recorder British  

/ rɪˈkɔːdə /

noun

1. a person who records, such as an official or historian

2. something that records, esp an apparatus that provides a permanent record of experiments, etc

3. short for tape recorder

4. music a wind instrument of the flute family, blown through a fipple in the mouth end, having a reedlike quality of tone. There are four usual sizes: bass, tenor, treble, and descant

5. (in England) a barrister or solicitor of at least ten years' standing appointed to sit as a part-time judge in the crown court

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recorder Cultural  

1. A wooden flute played like a whistle. It was popular in the fourteenth through eighteenth centuries. Interest in it has been revived over the past few decades.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• recordership
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• recorders
  plural

Etymology

Origin of recorder

1275–1325; Middle English recorder wind instrument ( see record, -er ¹), recordour legal official (< Anglo-French recordour, Old French recordeour )

Explanation

A recorder is a machine that reproduces (or records) sound. A reporter might use a recorder during an interview. A recorder is also often a first musical instrument for kids, who crank out “Hot Cross Buns” at top volume. A digital recorder and the recorder on your cell phone are both examples of electronic recorders. A person whose job involves taking notes or keeping written records during a meeting can also be called a recorder. A now-obsolete meaning of the verb record is "practice a tune," and from this came the 15th century name of the musical instrument called a recorder. These wind instruments are still around, not just in elementary schools.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

recorder recorders

Instead, the flight data recorder may have captured an electronic fuel-cutoff command rather than a mechanical switch movement.

From BBC ● Jun. 15, 2026

The preliminary report, released on July 12, indicated External link that two fuel cutoff switches transitioned from “RUN” to “CUTOFF,” according to the flight data recorder.

From Barron's ● Jun. 8, 2026

Walking and typing is dangerous, but walking and talking like a maniac into my own recorder is merely antisocial.

From Slate ● May 24, 2026

Later, recorder on, I asked my father about the country he left behind when he swam onto the crystal shores of the American Base at Guantanamo Bay.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 19, 2026

I turn the recorder off and sit on my bed.

From "Harbor Me" by Jacqueline Woodson

Stephen carried a neatly packed bag lined with recorders, headphones and batteries.

From Salon ● Jul. 28, 2026

Embarking on expeditions in vast and sometimes dangerous environments, Bigfoot hunters set out with drones, infrared cameras, audio recorders and materials to cast footprints.

From BBC ● Apr. 3, 2026

Richard Garstang, a portfolio manager for Oldfield Partners, touted Pason Systems, a Canadian oil services company that makes electronic drilling recorders that sit on rigs and offer real time monitoring.

From Barron's ● Mar. 19, 2026

Just as roadkill summons vultures, so too does human misery summon journalists, who travel across the country to shove cameras and recorders at people enduring things no one should experience.

From Slate ● Feb. 11, 2026

I was anxious to get started because I could see that Central had tape recorders and special headphones, things I hadn’t had in my French classes before.

From "Warriors Don't Cry: A Searing Memoir of the Battle to Integrate Little Rock's Central High" by Melba Pattillo Beals

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