feeder

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feeder

  • /ˈfidɚ/ US

Rhymes with -iːdə(ɹ)

Where it comes from

From Middle English feedere, federe, fedare, equivalent to feed + -er.

noun feeders

  1. One who feeds, or gives food to another.
  2. The participant in feederism who feeds the other (the feedee). Often similes such as 'soft as velvet' or 'fluffy like a cloud' will be employed and the feeder will describe how he feels he can be lost in the enveloping folds of soft flesh.
  3. One who feeds, or takes in food. The patch is kind enough, but a huge feeder, Snail-slow in profit, and he sleeps by day More than the wild-cat; […]
  4. One who, or that which, feeds material into something (especially a machine). When the claxon sounded they immediately stopped what they were doing and uncovered the Oerlikon. Paddy, who was ammunition feeder, stood by while Jock trained the 20mm gun around.
  5. That which is used to feed. bird feeder
  6. A tributary stream, especially of a canal. The surface of the Balaton and the surrounding marshes is not less than 24 German square miles, or 384 English square miles; its principal feeder is the Szala, but all the water it receives appears inconsiderable relatively to its superficial extent, and the quantity lost in evaporation.
  7. A branch line of a railway. This line, described as a valuable feeder to the Newcastle & Carlisle Railway, was opened on July 8, 1836, and superseded the older wagonway.
  8. A transmission line that feeds the electricity for an electricity substation, or for a transmitter.
  9. abbreviation, ellipsis Ellipsis of feeder school
  10. A feeder ship.
  11. US A judge whose law clerks are often selected to become clerks for the Supreme Court.
  12. archaic, slang The pitcher.
  13. derogatory A player whose character is killed by the opposing player or team more than once, deliberately or through lack of skills and experience, thus helping the opposing side.
  14. obsolete One who abets another. Go with me; if you like upon report The soil, the profit, and this kind of life, I will your very faithful feeder be, And buy it with your gold right suddenly.
  15. obsolete A parasite.
  16. Synonym of blower (“fissure from which firedamp issues”).

    Similar: blower

Thesaurus

Closest in meaning: eater, devourer, tributary, affluent, self-feeder, feeding, feed, food, manger, feedlot, rancher, eating, farmer, nourishment, grower, fertilizer

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MLA

"feeder." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/feeder. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

feeder. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/feeder

Chicago

"feeder." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/feeder.

BibTeX
@misc{feeder_2026,
  title = {feeder},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/feeder},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}