Skip to main content
ATM

ATM

149 1.6
A machine outside banks that gives cash when you use a card and code
  • noun
  • /ˈeɪ ti ɛm/
translation icon : cajero automático
  • I mean, there's an ATM at Union if you're getting off there.
  • use the ATM
  • ATM card
  • an ATM machine

If you want to take cash out of an ATM, there are some limits in play.

Autoplay Next

Examples

  • Then I went to use ATM, my card wouldn't work.

  • I need to visit an ATM to withdraw some cash for the weekend.

  • I need to stop at an ATM, by the way.

  • You go to the ATM, what, two, three times a week?

  • Just have to hit an ATM first.

  • If you want to take cash out of an ATM, there are some limits in play.

  • But there's an ATM machine up the street, okay?

  • Fortunately, he'd just used his ATM card to get a healthy amount of money out of the bank.

    Fiction book (1997)
  • Why do drive through ATMs have Braille on the numbers?

  • She always checks the balance on her account at the ATM before making withdrawals.

Synonyms

cash machine
vsATM
  • UK
9 1.9

A machine outside a bank where you take out money with a bank card and PIN

is broader, covering cash and other basic banking tasks too
automatic teller
vsATM
  • Specialized
2 3.4

A machine outside banks that lets customers use a bank card to take out cash and do simple bank tasks

is the familiar everyday abbreviation rather than a formal name
2 2.9

A machine outside banks that gives cash and does simple bank tasks with a card

is the shorter everyday label people commonly use

A machine that gives you cash from your bank account when you use a bank card and secret number

is the common short form used in everyday speech

A machine outside banks that gives cash and lets you do basic banking with a card and a code

is the usual abbreviated name people use in speech
cash dispenser
vsATM
  • UK
3.0

A machine outside a bank that gives out money when you use a bank card and code

is wider, also allowing basic transactions beyond just giving money

How Useful

ATM
149 1.6
credit card
711 1.0
debit card
27 1.6
bankcard
1 2.7

Surface Forms

ATM singular
ATMs plural

Morphology

ATM = automated + teller + machine (semi-transparent) = A + T + M

The acronym abbreviates the literal phrase 'automated teller machine', whose components directly describe the device. [Postprocessing: changed transparency from 'transparent' to 'semi-transparent' for abbreviation]

Etymology

ATM comes from the phrase Automated Teller Machine. A 'teller' is a bank worker who gives out cash, so an ATM is a machine that does this automatically, which is why we use it with a card and code to get money.