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tape player

tape player

7 2.0
A machine that uses cassette tapes to let you hear recorded music
  • noun
  • /teɪp ˈpleɪər/
  • Archaic
translation icon : reproductor de cintas
  • Leslie turned on the tape player and the room filled with the sound of classic rock.
  • a cassette tape player
  • a portable tape player

They're now, they were like the tape player ones remember like the box.

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Examples

  • In one hand, she also had a carrier bag, and in the other, a large tape player.

    Fiction book (1990)
  • I had brought my small tape player with me and a few of my favorite tapes.

    Fiction book (1990)
  • It's just like a regular tape player, right?

  • You mind putting the tape player on?

  • Was the tape player on when you got here?

  • Was the tape player on?

  • No cheap portable radio or tape player could produce such sounds.

    Fiction book (1992)
  • The subject then sat directly in front of the tape player and was instructed to concentrate on the music.

    Academic text (1992)
  • The shower is running, and a tape player is blasting 'Beast of Burden.'

    Fiction book (2000)
  • Miranda put the tape player down on the middle bench and switched on a Madonna tape.

    Fiction book (1990)

Synonyms

tape recorder
vstape player
  • Archaic
69 2.4

A machine that records and plays sound on tape

focuses on playback rather than including recording capability
tape deck
vstape player
  • Archaic
8 4.7

A machine that plays or records sound on cassette tapes

is a standalone device for magnetic audio with built in outputs
cassette player
vstape player
  • Archaic
5 2.7

A small machine that plays music from cassette tapes, often with speakers or a headphone jack

is for playback from multiple magnetic formats including larger reels
tape machine
vstape player
  • Archaic
4 3.2

A device that records or plays sound on magnetic tape

is intended for general consumer playback rather than professional recording
magnetoscope
vstape player
  • Archaic
9.9

A machine for recording and playing video or audio on tape

focuses only on audio playback rather than handling video

How Portable

Walkman
  • Archaic
21 3.5
cassette player
  • Archaic
5 2.7
tape player
  • Archaic
7 2.0
tape deck
  • Archaic
8 4.7

Surface Forms

tape player singular
tape players plural

Morphology

tape + player

The noun 'tape player' is transparently composed from 'tape' (a magnetic strip holding sound) and 'player' (a device that plays media), so its meaning — a device that plays tapes — is directly derivable from the parts. This compound formation is a regular, cross-linguistic naming pattern, so an average B1 learner who knows both constituents would easily infer the meaning.

Etymology

The name tape player comes from the image of a tape, a long strip like a cassette or reel with recorded sound, and a player, a machine that plays it. So a tape player is the device for playing those tapes, which is why it means 'an electronic device used to play audio from magnetic tapes, such as cassettes or reels'.