Definition

1. Noun:
   • A character printer that automatically prints stock quotations on ticker tape: A machine, now largely historical, that receives and prints real-time financial data, such as share prices and trading volumes, onto a narrow paper strip called ticker tape.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • The old office still had a vintage stock ticker on display.
  • Before digital screens, brokers relied on the stock ticker for the latest market prices.
  • The constant clatter of the stock ticker provided the soundtrack to the trading floor.

Advanced Usage

• Historical Context: The term "stock ticker" often evokes the era of physical ticker tape machines (late 19th to mid-20th century). In modern finance, the concept lives on digitally as the scrolling ticker symbol and price displays on financial news channels and websites, though these are not physical printers.
  • The invention of the stock ticker revolutionized the speed of financial communication.

Variants and Related Words

• Ticker (n): A common shortened, informal form of "stock ticker." Also refers to the scrolling electronic display of current stock prices.
  • Check the ticker for the latest update on our shares.
• Ticker tape (n): The long, narrow strip of paper on which a stock ticker prints.
  • Parades in New York City were once famous for showers of shredded ticker tape.
• Ticker symbol (n): The unique series of letters representing a publicly traded company (e.g., AAPL for Apple Inc.). This is related conceptually as the data printed by a stock ticker includes these symbols.

Synonyms

• Quotation printer: A more formal, descriptive synonym.
• Tape machine: A historical term referencing the ticker tape.

Related Phrases

• To watch the ticker: To monitor stock price movements closely, either on a historical machine or a modern electronic display.
  • Traders spent the afternoon watching the ticker for any major swings.
• Ticker-tape parade: A parade where shredded paper (originally from ticker tape) is thrown from buildings, celebrating an event or person.
  • The astronauts were honored with a ticker-tape parade.

Noun

1. a character printer that automatically prints stock quotations on ticker tape