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

More Emilee Chinn/Getty Images Kyle Schwarber emerged as a massive contributor on that memorable run for the Red Sox. —Tim Crowley, MSNBC Newsweek, 17 Sep. 2025

Kagent community edition serves as a CNCF project, with over 800 community members and more than 100 contributors, establishing credibility and reducing vendor lock-in concerns. —Janakiram Msv, Forbes.com, 17 Sep. 2025

But since my coverage scope is changing quite a bit, sadly that means this is my last week as a regular contributor to the Healthy Returns newsletter. —Annika Kim Constantino,ashley Capoot, CNBC, 17 Sep. 2025

King Philip will see crucial junior contributors like Ella Morgan (28 goals, 12 assists last season) and Tayla McDuff (nine goals, 15 assists) pacing the charge. —Brendan Connelly, Boston Herald, 16 Sep. 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