scanner

noun

scan·​ner ˈska-nər 

: one that scans: such as

a

: a device for sensing recorded data (as in a bar code)

a supermarket scanner

b

: a radio receiver that sequentially scans a range of frequencies for a signal

c

: a device that scans an image (such as a photograph) or document (such as a page of text) especially for use or storage on a computer

d

: a medical device for scanning a living body to collect diagnostic information see ct scanner

Examples of scanner in a Sentence

a price scanner at a supermarket

Recent Examples on the Web

Some used metal calipers, of the same type that the actual Marie Tussaud had employed in eighteenth-century France; others used a portable 3-D scanner, which Madame Tussaud did not. —Zach Zimmerman, The New Yorker, 23 Dec. 2024

More good news: Hobby Airport has new TSA scanners that eliminate the need to remove laptops and liquids. —Sareen Habeshian, Axios, 19 Dec. 2024

With the help of 3D scanners and Computer Numerical Control (CNC) milling machines, artists like Barry X Ball, Frank Benson, and Tavares Strachan are rebooting classical statuary while speaking to the transmuted sense of self that prevails in the age of the avatar. —Glenn Adamson, ARTnews.com, 16 Dec. 2024

Settlement dollars nationwide have bought body scanners, K-9 units, bulletproof vests, patrol trucks and laptops and printers for police and sheriffs. —Aneri Pattani, NPR, 16 Dec. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1556, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing scanner

• CAT scanner
• CT scanner

Kids Definition

scanner

noun

scan·​ner ˈskan-ər 

: one that scans: as

a

: a device that senses recorded information

b

: a radio receiver that scans a range of frequencies for a signal

c

: a device that scans an image or document especially for use or storage on a computer

d

: a device for scanning a living body to collect medical information

Medical Definition

scanner

noun

scan·​ner ˈskan-ər 

: a device (as a CT scanner) for making scans of a living body