Phonograph
/ˈfoʊ.nə.ɡræf/noun
A machine that records and reproduces sound.
Did you know?Its name comes from Greek roots meaning “sound” and “writing,” and it was originally marketed as a way to preserve human speech as if it were inscribed forever.
Etymological Timeline
Ancient Greek
Greek
phōnē
“voice, sound, speech”
Ancient Greek
Greek
graphein
“to write, inscribe”
19th Century
English
phonograph
“a device for recording sound”
1877
English
phonograph
“Thomas Edison’s sound-recording machine”
Modern English
English
phonograph
“a machine that records and reproduces sound”