1
a
: the office or position of a reader
b
: the quality or state of being a reader
2
: the mass or a particular group of readers
a magazine's readership

Examples of readership in a Sentence

She holds a readership in chemistry.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Their job is to reduce the world to a series of numbers that can be punched into increasingly complex statistical equations and published in esoteric journals with high barriers to entry and minuscule readerships. — Literary Hub, 22 Sep. 2026 There were heroic tales and tragic ones from the battlefield, and more obviously relevant ones to Western readerships such as the impact on European energy prices. — Tom Chivers, semafor.com, 10 Sep. 2026 Your readership is growing at a time when literacy rates are declining. — Clare Mulroy, USA Today, 2 Sep. 2026 The opposite of the gotcha interview is the expert interview, when Chotiner lets people who know their trades inside out explain them to his devoted readership. — Merve Emre, The New York Review of Books, 1 Sep. 2026 See All Example Sentences for readership

Word History

First Known Use

1719, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of readership was in 1719

Cite this Entry

“Readership.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/readership. Accessed 5 Oct. 2026.

Kids Definition

readership

noun
: a group of readers
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