keyboarder

IPA/ˈkiːbɔːdə(r)/
IPA/ˈkiːbɔːrdər/

keyboarder — noun

  • keyboardersingular
  • keyboardersplural

1. an office worker whose main daily task is typing records, numbers, or text on a

1.nounC1
Definition

an office worker whose main daily task is typing records, numbers, or text on a computer keyboard so the content is stored in a database or document.

Example

The hospital hired three keyboarders to type patient records into the new computer system.

typical workplace: keyboarders + verb of input

Sayaka worked as a keyboarder at a small law firm in Taipei for two years.

pattern: work as a keyboarder + at/for + organisation

Common collocations
  • skilled keyboarder
  • fast keyboarder
  • hire a keyboarder
  • work as a keyboarder
Synonyms

Grammar Patterns

a keyboarder + at/for + organisation

Usage Note

Often replaced in modern job adverts by 'data entry clerk' or 'data entry operator'; 'keyboarder' tends to appear in older or more formal job descriptions.

Common Mistakes

I play the piano, so I am a keyboarder.
I play the piano, so I am a keyboardist.
'keyboarder' is a data typist; a musician who plays a keyboard instrument is a 'keyboardist'.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

All four words name someone who turns spoken or written information into typed text, but the workplace and skill set differ. A 'typist' is the broadest, oldest term and once described any office worker who typed letters and reports on a typewriter or computer. A 'keyboarder' is a slightly newer, more technical word, used mainly when the job is feeding existing data into a computer system rather than producing original documents. A 'data entry clerk' does almost the same work as a keyboarder but the term is preferred in modern job adverts and HR documents, especially in offices and call centres. A 'stenographer' is more specialised — usually a courtroom worker who types spoken testimony at very high speed using a shorthand machine. So in everyday speech most people say 'typist' or 'data entry clerk'; 'keyboarder' sounds slightly old-fashioned.

keyboarder ↗typist ↗data entry clerkstenographer

Common collocations

Nouns

  • keyboarder job
  • keyboarder position

Phrases

  • work as a keyboarder
  • hire a keyboarder

Prepositions

  • keyboarder at
  • keyboarder for

Etymology

Old EnglishEnglish

Formed in English in the late twentieth century by adding the agent suffix '-er' to the noun 'keyboard'. The base noun 'keyboard' itself comes from 'key' (a small lever that is pressed) plus 'board' (a flat surface), first used for the row of keys on a piano in the 1700s and later extended to typewriters and computers.