cassette

noun

cas·​sette kə-ˈset 

ka-

variants or less commonly casette

1

: casket sense 1

2

: a usually flat case or cartridge that can be easily loaded or unloaded: such as

a

: a lightproof magazine for holding film or plates for use in a camera

b

: a plastic cartridge containing magnetic tape with the tape passing from one reel to another

3

: a cassette tape player

Examples of cassette in a Sentence

The songs are available on cassette.

Recent Examples on the Web

He’s watched the industry move from cassettes to CDs to mp3 files to straight up streaming. —Ime Ekpo, Forbes.com, 19 May 2025

Elsewhere, Tucker keeps a cabinet stocked with roughly 40 video cassettes, each labeled with a name and a lock of hair. —Peter Debruge, Variety, 17 May 2025

And some of the technology had grown exotic with time, like the VHS cassette one woman is clutching, or the telephone number posted by whoever had (or claimed to have) some tickets to a Beastie Boys concert. —Kelefa Sanneh, New Yorker, 17 May 2025

Music formats went from vinyl to 8-track and cassette to DAT and CD. —Fred Goldring, Billboard, 9 May 2025

Word History

Etymology

French, from Middle French, diminutive of dialect French (Norman & Picard) casse case

First Known Use

1793, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for cassette

• abet
• asset
• baguette
• banquette
• barbette
• beget
• beset
• brevet
• briquette
• brunet
• brunette
• burette

Kids Definition

cassette

noun

cas·​sette kə-ˈset 

ka-

: a container holding film, photographic plates, or magnetic tape

Medical Definition

cassette

noun

cas·​sette

variants also casette

kə-ˈset, ka- 

1

: a lightproof magazine for holding film or plates for use in a camera

specifically : one for holding the intensifying screens and film in X-ray photography

2

: a small plastic cartridge containing magnetic tape with the tape on one reel passing to the other