client

[ klahy-uhnt ]
See synonyms for client on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. a person or group that uses the professional advice or services of a lawyer, accountant, advertising agency, architect, etc.

  2. a person who is receiving the benefits, services, etc., of a social welfare agency, a government bureau, etc.

  1. a customer.

  2. anyone under the patronage of another; a dependent.

  3. Computers. a computer or an application on a computer that communicates with a remote server: Exit the program before installing the patch to update the client.

  4. (in ancient Rome) a plebeian who lived under the patronage of a patrician.

adjective
  1. being a regular customer: a client company.

  2. economically, and often militarily, dependent upon a more prosperous, more powerful nation.

Origin of client

1
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Latin client-, stem of cliēns “person seeking the protection or influence of someone powerful”; perhaps akin to clīnāre “to bend” (see incline)

Other words from client

  • cli·en·tal [klahy-en-tl, klahy-uhn-tl], /klaɪˈɛn tl, ˈklaɪ ən tl/, adjective
  • non·cli·ent, adjective

Words Nearby client

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use client in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for client

client

/ (ˈklaɪənt) /


noun
  1. a person, company, etc, that seeks the advice of a professional man or woman

  2. a customer

  1. a person who is registered with or receiving services or financial aid from a welfare agency

  2. computing a program or work station that requests data or information from a server

  3. a person depending on another's patronage

Origin of client

1
C14: from Latin cliēns retainer, dependant; related to Latin clīnāre to lean

Derived forms of client

  • cliental (klaɪˈɛntəl), adjective

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

Scientific definitions for client

client

[ klīənt ]


  1. A program that runs on a personal computer or workstation connected to a computer network and requests information from a file server.

The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.