screen saver

noun

: a computer program that usually displays various images on the screen of a computer that is on but not in use

Examples of screen saver in a Sentence

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.
Mirren, who is also a stepmother to Hackford’s son Alex, 46, keeps Rio’s picture as her screen saver on her phone. Eric Andersson, People.com, 21 Aug. 2025 The screen saver plays a NASA graphic in which the Earth goes from green to yellow to orange to red, again and again. Roy Scranton august 20, Literary Hub, 20 Aug. 2025 Someone describes it as like being inside a screen saver. Robert Lloyd, Los Angeles Times, 3 July 2025 He’s spent 15 years covering the intersection of technology, culture, and politics at places like The Atlantic, Gizmodo, and Vice. Roku City, the oddly alluring cityscape screen saver, scrolls across millions of idle TVs every day. Adam Clark Estes, Vox, 27 Mar. 2025 See All Example Sentences for screen saver

Word History

First Known Use

1981, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of screen saver was in 1981

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Cite this Entry

“Screen saver.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/screen%20saver. Accessed 10 Sep. 2025.

Kids Definition

screen saver

noun
: a computer program that usually displays various images on the screen of a computer that is on but not in use
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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