cartridge

[ kahr-trij ]
See synonyms for cartridge on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. Also called cartouche. a cylindrical case of pasteboard, metal, or the like, for holding a complete charge of powder, and often also the bullet or the shot for a rifle, machine gun, or other small arm.

  2. a case containing any explosive charge, as for blasting.

  1. any small container for powder, liquid, or gas, made for ready insertion into some device or mechanism: an ink cartridge for a pen.

  2. Also called magazine. Photography. a lightproof metal or plastic container for a roll of film, usually containing both the supply and take-up spools, as well as a pressure plate, for rapid loading without the necessity of threading the film.

  3. a flat, compact container enclosing an endless loop of audiotape, operated by inserting into a slot in a player.

Origin of cartridge

1
1570–80; earlier cartage, cartrage, alteration of cartouche

Words Nearby cartridge

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

How to use cartridge in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for cartridge

cartridge

/ (ˈkɑːtrɪdʒ) /


noun
  1. a cylindrical, usually metal casing containing an explosive charge and often a bullet, for a rifle or other small arms

  2. a case for an explosive, such as a blasting charge

  1. an electromechanical transducer in the pick-up of a record player, usually either containing a piezoelectric crystal (crystal cartridge) or an electromagnet (magnetic cartridge)

  2. a container for magnetic tape that is inserted into a tape deck in audio or video systems. It is about four times the size of a cassette

  3. Also called: cassette, magazine photog a light-tight film container that enables a camera to be loaded and unloaded in normal light

  4. computing a removable unit in a printer which contains black or coloured ink

  5. computing a removable unit in a computer, such as an integrated circuit, containing software

Origin of cartridge

1
C16: from earlier cartage, variant of cartouche (cartridge)

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