contributor

noun

con·​trib·​u·​tor kən-ˈtri-byə-tər 

-bə-,

-ˌbyü-

: someone or something that contributes something or that contributes to something

charitable contributors

… have suggested that the fee would hurt the agriculture industry, a sector they claim is the largest contributor to the state economy.

—Wenonah Hauter

… was illustrated by Oliver Munday, a frequent contributor to the Book Review …

—John Williams

These particles, which are known as black carbon and are the major component of soot, are the second most important contributor to global warming, behind only carbon dioxide, wrote the 31 authors of the study …

—Elisabeth Rosenthal

Examples of contributor in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Left unchecked, proximity bias can create inequity, restrict knowledge transfer and marginalize remote contributors even when metrics suggest their performance is equal or greater. —Melody Brue, Forbes.com, 15 Aug. 2025

The latest slowdown was expected, as major contributors to the outperformance in the first half of the year, such as government stimulus and pre-emptive trade, are fading out, said Tianchen Xu, senior economist at Economist Intelligence Unit. —Anniek Bao, CNBC, 15 Aug. 2025

Entertainment gossip and news from Newsweek's network of contributors Ryan Reynolds has more than 70 film credits to his name. —Griff Griffin, MSNBC Newsweek, 15 Aug. 2025

The top three contributors to hydroplaning are: Vehicle speed - When a vehicle's speed increases, the tire-traction grip and ability to control the vehicle decreases. —Nc Weather Bot, Charlotte Observer, 15 Aug. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English contributour "person who pays a tax or assessment," borrowed from Anglo-French, "one who pays a share of a tax or fine," from Latin contribūt-, past participle stem of Latin contribuere "to give as a portion or share" + -our -or entry 1 — more at contribute

First Known Use

circa 1531, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for contributor

• distributor