demo

noun \ ˈde-(ˌ)mō \

|Updated on: 16 Jun 2018

Examples: demo in a Sentence

Definition of demo

plural demos

1 capitalized : democrat 2

2 a : demonstration 1b

b British : demonstration 4

3 a : demonstrator a

b : a recording intended to show off a song or performer to a record producer

c : an example of a product that is not yet ready to be sold

a demo version of the software

4 : demographic 2

See demo defined for English-language learners

See demo defined for kids

Examples of demo in a Sentence

She will be showing a demo of the company's new alarm system.
a demo version of the software
I saw a demo on how to use the computer program.
The salesman gave us a demo of the vacuum cleaner, and it seemed to work very well.
They sent the demo to several record companies.
She cut a demo last week.

Recent Examples of demo from the Web

And get this: The Threadripper 2 demo ran on a monster of an air cooler!

— brad chacos, PCWorld, "The Full Nerd special episode: AMD's Jim Anderson goes deep on 32-core Threadripper 2," 6 June 2018
Apple also showed off a way to scroll through apps and even load Web pages on Apple Watch, thanks to an employee who did the demo while working out on a stationery bike.

— marco della cava, USA TODAY, "Apple's WWDC unveils ways to help you put the iPhone down — and then get sucked back in," 4 June 2018
The assumption is that the demographic for Star Wars movies, like the demo for MCU movies, is absolutely everybody, from the youngest kids to much older viewers who grew up with the movies in the 1970s.

— tasha robinson, The Verge, "Question Club: Where should Star Wars go after Solo’s box-office disappointment?," 1 June 2018
The return of the culinary competition averaged a 1.1 rating in the key demo across two episodes.

— michael o'connell, The Hollywood Reporter, "TV Ratings: 'American Ninja Warrior' Tops, 'Reverie' Disappoints," 31 May 2018
In a demo last week, Lê sampled two of them, whose names may not be suitable for a family website.

— michael klein, Philly.com, "Hop Sing Laundromat's Lê creating drink list for Han Dynasty," 24 Apr. 2018
With time-shifting, the numbers jump to a 6.4 rating in the key demo and 22.1 million viewers.

— justin l. mack, Indianapolis Star, "Here's why 'Roseanne' was canceled by ABC," 29 May 2018
For the company, this demo was a major step up from January 2016, when the aircraft—then called the AirMule— first took off.

— jack stewart, WIRED, "Israel's Self-Flying 'Cormorant' Whisks Wounded Soldiers to Safety," 26 May 2018
Google's demo is one of the most innovative, forward-looking consumer tech innovations of the year.

— jefferson graham, USA TODAY, "Google's version of robocalls has small businesses skeptical," 10 May 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'demo.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

First Known Use of demo

1793

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

NEW! Time Traveler

demo

verb

Definition of demo

demoed also demo'd; demoing also demo'ing; demos

transitive verb

1 : to give a demonstration of (something, such as a product or procedure) : to show how (something) works, is prepared, or is done

The chef demoed everything. His first demo was peeling a carrot.
—Michael Ruhlman

One dealer didn't even have demonstration software; the only thing he could demo was the power light.
—Video Magazine

2 : demolish

My mom put little masks on me and my brother, gave us goggles and crowbars, and we demo'd the walls.
—Matt Damon

Brick salvaged from a demoed fireplace and backyard path make up the new stoop and walkway.
—Natalie Rodriguez

3 : to create a demo (see ¹demo 3b) recording of (a piece of music)

… spent three months rehearsing and demoing songs for their third album …
—David Fricke

4 : to use (something, such as a product) in order to test its quality or value : to try out (something)

The surest way to pick exactly the right ski for your needs is to first narrow your choices to a workable number … and then go out and demo three or four pairs to make your final selection.
—Bill Grout

Recent Examples of demo from the Web

Craig Federighi, Apple’s senior vice president of software engineering, demoed how the new ARKit 2 platform has improved tracking capabilities so that coders can build apps that can more realistically detail the real world.

— jonathan vanian, Fortune, "Apple Just Debuted Powerful New Augmented Reality Features," 4 June 2018
The organization tallied the numbers in advance of JPMorgan Chase Bank's plans to demo the former Union Carbide Building, built in 1960 at a height of 215.5 meters, in New York to make way for a new headquarters.

— katherine feser, Houston Chronicle, "3 Houston buildings among world's tallest to have been torn down," 31 May 2018
Currently, a select group of users have been demoing Waymo's self-driving ride hailing service, but the company plans to open it to the public in the Arizona city laster this year.

— marco della cava, USA TODAY, "Waymo will add up to 62,000 FCA minivans to self-driving fleet," 31 May 2018
And as the first company to demo this tech, Google has a responsibility to face these issues head-on.

— james vincent, The Verge, "Google’s AI sounds like a human on the phone — should we be worried?," 9 May 2018
Neely demoed Bonnie down to the original aluminum framing, added new insulation, replaced the rotten sub floor, and added all new electrical, AC, plumbing, and windows.

— megan barber, Curbed, "Restored vintage Airstream is 140 square feet of mobile bliss," 7 May 2018
The series of clips begins with Kim sitting Mario in her chair to demo her latest launch, which basically meant drawing all over him with her new KKW Beauty x Argenis Crème Color Sticks.

— zoë weiner, Teen Vogue, "Kim Kardashian Does Mario Dedivanovic's Makeup With KKW Beauty x Argenis Crème Color Sticks," 24 Apr. 2018
The Live Sharing collaborative coding and debugging system that first demoed last year is now in preview.

— peter bright, Ars Technica, "Build 2018: Microsoft embraces its new platforms, Azure and Microsoft 365," 7 May 2018
Fans can demo hockey equipment from manufacturers such as Bauer and CCM, and participate in outdoor street hockey, video games and inflatables.

— matthew defranks, Sun-Sentinel.com, "Colton Sceviour, Panthers alumni to be at Hockeyfest on Saturday," 4 May 2018

Origin and Etymology of demo

by shortening

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1969

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

demo-

combining form

variants: or before vowels dem-

Definition of demo-

: people : populace : population

demography

demonym

Origin and Etymology of demo-

combining form from Greek dêmos "district, country, people, common people, political district in Attica," of uncertain origin

Note: Greek dêmos has traditionally been linked with Old Irish dám "guests, company, retinue," Old Welsh dauu, glossing Latin cliens (hence, presumably, "member of a retinue"), Modern Welsh daw, dawf "son-in-law." However, the semantic discrepancy between the two etyma is significant, and Celtic *dāmo-/*dāmā- has more recently been explained as going back to *dōmo-, a lengthened-grade adjectival derivative of Indo-European *dom-o-s, "house, household." The further traditional link with Indo-European *deh₂- "cut, divide" (whence Greek daíomai, daíesthai "to divide"; cf. ¹tide), assuming a noun *deh₂-mos meaning originally "part, division," is still possible, though it would be deprived of any support beside Greek.

Learn More about demo

Spanish Central: Translation of demo Nglish: Translation of demo for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of demo for Arabic speakers

Seen and Heard

What made you want to look up demo? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).

show

demo

Definition of demo

Examples of demo in a Sentence

Recent Examples of demo from the Web

First Known Use of demo

demo

Definition of demo

Recent Examples of demo from the Web

Origin and Etymology of demo

demo-

Definition of demo-

Origin and Etymology of demo-

Learn More about demo

Seen and Heard

WORD OF THE DAY

balmy

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Test Your Vocabulary

Words at Play

'Than': What Follows It and Why

Words We're Watching: 'B side'

Can You Use 'Comprised of'?

Words We're Watching: '-iversary'

Ask the Editors

Ghost Word

2017 Word of the Year: Behind the Scenes

Literally

Is Singular 'They' a Better Choice?

Word Games

Name More Food!

Yearbook Superlatives Quiz

How Strong Is Your Vocabulary?

Add Diction

Trending: 'Asylum' Trends as Policies Draw Attention

'Than': What Follows It and Why

Name More Food!

9 Words for Transnational Currencies

Ghost Word

demo

Definition of demo

Examples of demo in a Sentence

Recent Examples of demo from the Web

First Known Use of demo

demo

Definition of demo

Recent Examples of demo from the Web

Origin and Etymology of demo

demo-

Definition of demo-

Origin and Etymology of demo-

Learn More about demo

Seen and Heard

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Words at Play

Ask the Editors

Word Games

Trending: 'Asylum' Trends as Policies Draw Attention

'Than': What Follows It and Why

Name More Food!

9 Words for Transnational Currencies

Ghost Word