stylus

noun

sty·lus | \ ˈstī-ləs

plural styli\ ˈstī(-ə)-ˌlī

\ also styluses\ ˈstī-lə-səz

Definition of stylus

: an instrument for writing, marking, or incising: such as

a : an instrument used by the ancients in writing on clay or waxed tablets

b : a hard-pointed pen-shaped instrument for marking on stencils used in a reproducing machine

c(1) : needle sense 3c

(2) : a cutting tool used to produce an original record groove during disc recording

d : a pen-shaped pointing device used for entering data (such as positional information from a graphics tablet) into a computer

Examples of stylus in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Alongside the tablet refresh, Apple introduced the first major update to the Apple Pencil since the stylus debuted in 2015 alongside the original iPad Pro. — Valentina Palladino, Ars Technica, "Adieu, home button—Apple’s new iPad Pros have nearly edge-to-edge screens, FaceID," 30 Oct. 2018 The stylus, when inserted back into the phone, fully recharges within 40 seconds. — Timothy W. Martin, WSJ, "Samsung Introduces Galaxy Note 9, a Smartphone Strikingly Like Its Predecessor," 9 Aug. 2018 Designed in Seattle, this chic stylus allows users to draw freely on the iPad or iPhone. — Caitlin Flynn, The Seattle Times, "Back-to-school: Top computer and tablet accessories," 6 Aug. 2018 Some are only designed to scroll up and down a webpage with a finger, while better ones may come with more advanced features and standard pens and styluses. — Paige Szmodis, Popular Mechanics, "The Best Touchscreen Laptops of 2019," 30 Apr. 2019 The new stylus will reportedly pair with the new iPad Pros by proximity, much like AirPods do with other Apple devices. — Valentina Palladino, Ars Technica, "iPad Pro rumors: 4K HDR video output over USB-C, flexible Face ID, and more," 9 Oct. 2018 As someone who still fondly remembers his solid metal Palm stylus, the S-Pen is disappointing. — Ron Amadeo, Ars Technica, "Galaxy Note9 hands-on—Samsung ships a bigger battery, not much else," 9 Aug. 2018 The company’s initial reluctance to offer a stylus or a keyboard has since turned into multiple generations of keyboard covers and Apple Pencils. — Vlad Savov, The Verge, "Google keeps failing to understand tablets," 29 Nov. 2018 While there are strong rumors that Samsung will be shipping the Note 9 with an updated Bluetooth powered stylus, the Galaxy Tab S4 ships with the same dumb S-Pen. — Michael Simon, PCWorld, "Samsung's Galaxy Tab S4 is a work-first tablet built to take on the iPad Pro and Surface Laptop," 1 Aug. 2018

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