Stylus

Quick meaning: Stylus is a noun meaning A hard-pointed pen-shaped instrument for marking on stencils used in a mimeograph machine.

Meaning

A hard-pointed pen-shaped instrument for marking on stencils used in a mimeograph machine.

More Meanings

1. A hard point, typically of diamond or sapphire, following a groove in a phonograph and transmitting the recorded sound for reproduction.
2. A tool for making small dots on a piece of heavy paper, used to produce Braille writing for the blind by hand.
3. (botany) Synonym of style.
4. (writing) An ancient writing implement consisting of a small rod with a pointed end for scratching letters on clay, wax-covered tablets or other surfaces, and a blunt end for obliterating them.

Example Sentences

[T]he pleasure of writing on wax with a stylus is exemplified by the fine, flowing hand of a Roman scribe who made out the birth certificate of Herennia Gemella, born March 128 AD.

But that tactic may have older roots than we thought; archaeologists have discovered an iron stylus in London, complete with an inscribed joke, that dates back nearly 2,000 years. Of 200 styluses found at a site under Bloomberg’s new European headquarters, only one – dating back to around 70 A.D. – had a message inscribed onto it.

Word Forms

• styli
• styluses

Synonyms for stylus

Depending on context, synonyms include needle, style.

Related Words

Related dictionary entries include style, crayon, pencil, pointer, spear, needle.

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