wrapper
Americannoun
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a person or thing that wraps.
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a covering or cover.
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a long, loose outer garment.
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a loose bathrobe; negligee.
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British. book jacket.
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the tobacco leaf used for covering a cigar.
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Armor. a supplementary beaver reinforcing the chin and mouth area of an armet of the 15th century.
noun
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the cover, usually of paper or cellophane, in which something is wrapped
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a dust jacket of a book
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the ripe firm tobacco leaf forming the outermost portion of a cigar and wound around its body
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a loose negligee or dressing gown, esp in the 19th century
Etymology
Origin of wrapper
late Middle English word dating back to 1425–75; see origin at wrap, -er 1
Explanation
A wrapper is any kind of loose cover that encloses something that's for sale. The brightly colored paper that covers your candy bar is a wrapper. If you wrap something in foil or plastic to sell it, you've made a wrapper. Many wrappers are factory-made and sealed, like the wrapper on your ice cream bar, while others protect your fast-food burger or deli sandwich. In some places, people call a dressing gown or robe a wrapper too. No matter how you use the word, a wrapper wraps something. Its earliest use, in the 15th century, was as "a piece of fine cloth used to wrap bread."
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.
And at a Valentine's Day viewing of Wuthering Heights earlier this year, a woman nearby in the auditorium was eating a huge chocolate heart, unwrapping a crinkly wrapper in the process.
From BBC • Apr. 24, 2026
“You’ve got people coming in and doing things with the ETF wrapper that were probably not foreseen in any way.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 23, 2026
“Big wasn’t a crush, he was a crash,” Carrie says to Miranda as she peels down the wrapper on a cupcake topped with bright pink buttercream frosting.
From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 11, 2026
There is no stock ticker, no brokerage-account access and no public-equity wrapper for these businesses.
From MarketWatch • Dec. 3, 2025
“Deje,” he greeted, and then remained silent, watching, while his aunty helped her tie her wrapper around her waist and led her out.
From "Half of a Yellow Sun" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
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.
