personal computer

noun

|Updated on: 6 Jun 2018

Definition of personal computer

: a general-purpose computer equipped with a microprocessor and designed to run especially commercial software (such as a word processor or Internet browser) for an individual user

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Recent Examples of personal computer from the Web

Along with the emergence of personal computers in the 1980s came software that sped up that effort.

— marco santana, OrlandoSentinel.com, "Wycliffe Bible Translators seeks summer coding interns to build translation software, apps," 15 May 2018
Intel is leaning on the unit, which typically makes up around one-third of its revenue, as sales of personal computers give way to mobile devices and smart speakers.

— ted greenwald, WSJ, "Intel’s Higher Profit Shows Firm Shaking Off Chip Flaws," 26 Apr. 2018
The first internet boom was also in full swing, and Microsoft’s Windows software — the operating system on 90 percent of the world’s personal computers — controlled that gateway to the future with its browser, Internet Explorer.

— steve lohr and nick wingfield, New York Times, "When Mr. Gates Went to Washington," 14 Apr. 2018
The Boca Raton Innovation Campus, a 125-acre office park that was once the South Florida home of IBM and the birthplace of its personal computer, is back in local hands.

— david lyons, Sun-Sentinel.com, "Boca Raton Innovation Campus, former home to IBM, sells for reported $179 million," 10 Apr. 2018
My personal computer was programed by the Christian Reform Church of Grand Rapids Christian High and Calvin College.

— Washington Post, "Q&A: Schrader on ‘First Reformed,’ ‘Taxi Driver’ and God," 16 May 2018
Last year, Chromebooks were estimated to have won half of the market share for personal computers and tablets in the US education market, up from a mere 9 percent in 2013.

— lauren goode, The Verge, "Apple leans on multimedia to convince schools that iPads are better than Chromebooks," 28 Mar. 2018
State television showed outdated personal computers supposedly poised to mine the new currency.

— The Economist, "Venezuela's crypto-currency: salvation or scam?," 17 Mar. 2018
About 53 million tax returns were filed online by individuals using a personal computer in fiscal 2017, according to the IRS Data Book.

— susan tompor, Detroit Free Press, "5 tips for really last-minute Tax Day filers," 16 Apr. 2018

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

First Known Use of personal computer

1959

in the meaning defined above

See Words from the same year

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