What does typist mean?
A typist is someone who types, especially a person whose occupation is preparing letters, reports, and other documents with a keyboard or typewriter. The word is used in British and American English and has a long-standing professional sense, although technology has made the role less prominent than it once was. In contemporary writing, it may sound formal, historical, or nostalgic, often suggesting careful clerical work and a period before computers became standard in offices. The term can also be used more broadly for a person who types as part of another job, but its clearest meaning is occupational: a person whose principal responsibility is typing. Even where the exact occupation is uncommon, “typist” remains useful in fiction, biography, and discussions of changing workplace technology because it captures a recognizable phase of modern office life.
nounA typist is a person who types, especially someone employed to type letters, documents, or other written material. The word can also refer more generally to someone whose main task is keyboard typing.
- A person who types, especially as an occupation; a person employed to prepare written documents by typing.
"She worked as a typist for a busy law firm."
"The company hired a typist to enter the reports into the database."
"In the story set in the 1960s, she begins work as a typist in a downtown office."
The standard plural form is “typists.”
"Several typists were assigned to prepare the annual reports."
Before computers, a typist could turn a stack of dictated words into a finished document, making speed and accuracy valuable professional skills.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does typist come from?
“Typist” was formed in the 19th century from “type” and the suffix “-ist,” meaning a person who does or works with something. “Type” comes through Latin from Greek typos, associated with a model, pattern, or impressed form. The same root underlies words such as “typewriter,” “typography,” and “typical,” reflecting the shared sense of forms, models, or impressed characters.
How typist is actually used
The term is formal and somewhat old-fashioned today, but remains recognizable in historical, literary, and occupational contexts. It is less common than the broader description of a person who types or works in data entry, and it can suggest a job focused specifically on keyboard-based document preparation.