recorder

noun

re·​cord·​er ri-ˈkȯr-dər 

1

a

: the chief judicial magistrate of some British cities and boroughs

b

: a municipal judge with criminal jurisdiction of first instance and sometimes limited civil jurisdiction

2

: one that records

3

: any of a group of wind instruments ranging from soprano to bass that are characterized by a conical tube, a whistle mouthpiece, and eight finger holes

Illustration of recorder

• recorder 3

Examples of recorder in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The complaint shows that Christopher Wright, the county’s recorder of deeds, forwarded the agreement to Fricker. — Kacen Bayless, Kansas City Star, 22 Sep. 2026

Authorities are also reviewing the SUV’s event data recorder to determine Rios’ speed, braking and acceleration in the seconds before the deadly crash. — Hannah Fry, Los Angeles Times, 17 Sep. 2026

Event data recorder downloads sometimes capture belt status and pretensioner activity, at least when the module survived and the data was obtained lawfully. — Kaitlyn Gomez, Miami Herald, 15 Sep. 2026

None of the recorders from the New York planes were ever found. — Alexandra Skores, CNN Money, 10 Sep. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing recorder

• cockpit voice recorder
• flight data recorder
• flight recorder
• strip-chart recorder
• tape recorder
• videocassette recorder
• videotape recorder
• wire recorder

Rhymes for recorder

• camcorder
• disorder
• reorder
• suborder
• transborder
• boarder
• border
• corder
• order
• warder

Kids Definition

recorder

noun

re·​cord·​er ri-ˈkȯrd-ər 

1

: a person or device that records

2

: a musical instrument consisting of a usually wooden tube with finger holes and a whistle mouthpiece

Legal Definition

recorder

noun

re·​cord·​er

1

: a judge of a municipal court

2

: a public officer charged with making a record of writings or transactions (as conveyances)

a recorder of deeds