pe·riph·er·al
pə-ˈri-f(ə-)rəl 
1
: of, relating to, involving, or forming a periphery or surface part
2
a
: of, relating to, affecting, or being part of the peripheral nervous system
peripheral nerves
peripheral neuritis
b
: of, relating to, or being blood in the systemic circulation
peripheral lymphocytes
3
: of, relating to, or being the outer part of the field of vision
good peripheral vision
4
: auxiliary, supplementary
peripheral equipment
also
: of or relating to computer peripherals
peripherally
adverb
: a device connected to a computer to provide communication (such as input and output) or auxiliary functions (such as additional storage)
Did you know?
Your peripheral vision is the outer area of your field of vision, where you can still detect movement and shapes. It can be very valuable when, for instance, you're driving into Chicago at rush hour, especially when switching lanes. When people call an issue in a discussion peripheral, they mean that it's not of primary importance, and they're probably suggesting that everyone get back to the main topic. Peripheral is now also a noun: computer peripherals are the added components—printers, webcams, microphones, etc.—that increase a computer's capacities.
Synonyms
Examples of peripheral in a Sentence
Adjective
If we focus too much on peripheral issues, we will lose sight of the goal.
peripheral devices such as modems and scanners
He saw in his peripheral vision that a car was trying to pass him.
Recent Examples on the Web
Allen Farmelo, Robb Report, 9 Apr. 2024
The new addition brings Shockwave’s technology, called intravascular lithotripsy, which uses sound waves to break up calcification in heart vessels and the peripheral circulation.
—Bloomberg, The Mercury News, 5 Apr. 2024
As well as promoting the secretion of white blood cells, serotonin receptors help modulate the peripheral immune system, which works alongside the central immune system and is responsible for all immune responses that take place outside of the brain.
—Georgia Day, Vogue, 16 Mar. 2024
His brain aneurysm left him without his right peripheral vision.
—Clay Risen, New York Times, 12 Mar. 2024
Montalcino is arguably best experienced by bicycle, with views of hilly vineyards and meandering farm animals serving as your peripheral scenery while en route to a visit to Fortezza di Montalcino.
—Nicole Kliest, Vogue, 12 Mar. 2024
Doing so communicates to employees and other stakeholders that these issues are not simply peripheral concerns but form an integral part of the company’s culture and way of doing business.
—Oludolapo Makinde, Forbes, 14 Feb. 2024
The sound quality is fantastic and the earbuds are designed for peripheral hearing and to fit comfortably under helmet pads.
—David Moses, Travel + Leisure, 5 Jan. 2024
At the same time, a bonanza of state spending has created a large-scale redistribution of resources which has strengthened Putin’s base of support among the poorer and more peripheral sectors of society.
—Joshua Yaffa, The New Yorker, 16 Mar. 2024
Jon Porter, The Verge, 28 Mar. 2024
Eflin threw his curve with great frequency (26.5%), and had almost exactly the same peripherals (matching 84 Adjusted Contact Scores, 18.0% vs. 18.4% whiff rate) as Burnes.
—Tony Blengino, Forbes, 16 Feb. 2024
The permanent connections to peripherals like printers or webcams can be connected via the rear ports, keeping everything neat.
—Mark Sparrow, Forbes, 12 Feb. 2024
There is one notable change on the peripheral side, however: the Pi 5 will lower power output to USB peripherals down to 600 mA under heavy workloads when using a typical 15-Watt USB-C connector, lower than the 1.2-Amp limit on the Pi 4.
—Kevin Purdy, Ars Technica, 28 Sep. 2023
Audio devices like headphones, speakers, and other similar peripherals, greatly enhance individuals’ experience using a computer.
—Miami Herald, 25 Jan. 2024
This pre-loved MacBook Air also has a 13.3-inch display with Intel HD Graphics 6000, 128GB of SSD storage for important files and other media, and seamless WiFi and Bluetooth 4.0 connectivity for easy file transfers, pairing with peripherals, and more.
—Stackcommerce Team, PCMAG, 22 Jan. 2024
The monitor adds an extra AI spin to ongoing conversations about what qualifies as cheating as gaming computers and peripherals get more advanced and try to inject themselves more fully into gameplay.
—Scharon Harding, Ars Technica, 14 Jan. 2024
One of the nice things about Hyper’s Apple peripherals is that they’re designed to blend in with your Apple devices, so this dongle is comes in a space gray metal enclosure with rounded edges that doesn’t look out of place or stick out like a sore thumb when plugged into your iPad.
—Brenda Stolyar, WIRED, 26 Nov. 2023
Adjective
Once again pushing the boundaries of thinness, Piaget uses a peripheral tourbillon, meaning that a wheel meshes with the edge of the cage in order to rotate it.
—Allen Farmelo, Robb Report, 9 Apr. 2024
The new addition brings Shockwave’s technology, called intravascular lithotripsy, which uses sound waves to break up calcification in heart vessels and the peripheral circulation.
—Bloomberg, The Mercury News, 5 Apr. 2024
As well as promoting the secretion of white blood cells, serotonin receptors help modulate the peripheral immune system, which works alongside the central immune system and is responsible for all immune responses that take place outside of the brain.
—Georgia Day, Vogue, 16 Mar. 2024
His brain aneurysm left him without his right peripheral vision.
—Clay Risen, New York Times, 12 Mar. 2024
Montalcino is arguably best experienced by bicycle, with views of hilly vineyards and meandering farm animals serving as your peripheral scenery while en route to a visit to Fortezza di Montalcino.
—Nicole Kliest, Vogue, 12 Mar. 2024
Doing so communicates to employees and other stakeholders that these issues are not simply peripheral concerns but form an integral part of the company’s culture and way of doing business.
—Oludolapo Makinde, Forbes, 14 Feb. 2024
The sound quality is fantastic and the earbuds are designed for peripheral hearing and to fit comfortably under helmet pads.
—David Moses, Travel + Leisure, 5 Jan. 2024
At the same time, a bonanza of state spending has created a large-scale redistribution of resources which has strengthened Putin’s base of support among the poorer and more peripheral sectors of society.
—Joshua Yaffa, The New Yorker, 16 Mar. 2024
Noun
Underneath its beautifully chunky brown keycaps (ABS plastic with double-shot legends) and Commodore-style rainbow logo, this is basically the same peripheral as 8BitDo’s previous NES keyboard.
—Jon Porter, The Verge, 28 Mar. 2024
Eflin threw his curve with great frequency (26.5%), and had almost exactly the same peripherals (matching 84 Adjusted Contact Scores, 18.0% vs. 18.4% whiff rate) as Burnes.
—Tony Blengino, Forbes, 16 Feb. 2024
The permanent connections to peripherals like printers or webcams can be connected via the rear ports, keeping everything neat.
—Mark Sparrow, Forbes, 12 Feb. 2024
There is one notable change on the peripheral side, however: the Pi 5 will lower power output to USB peripherals down to 600 mA under heavy workloads when using a typical 15-Watt USB-C connector, lower than the 1.2-Amp limit on the Pi 4.
—Kevin Purdy, Ars Technica, 28 Sep. 2023
Audio devices like headphones, speakers, and other similar peripherals, greatly enhance individuals’ experience using a computer.
—Miami Herald, 25 Jan. 2024
This pre-loved MacBook Air also has a 13.3-inch display with Intel HD Graphics 6000, 128GB of SSD storage for important files and other media, and seamless WiFi and Bluetooth 4.0 connectivity for easy file transfers, pairing with peripherals, and more.
—Stackcommerce Team, PCMAG, 22 Jan. 2024
The monitor adds an extra AI spin to ongoing conversations about what qualifies as cheating as gaming computers and peripherals get more advanced and try to inject themselves more fully into gameplay.
—Scharon Harding, Ars Technica, 14 Jan. 2024
One of the nice things about Hyper’s Apple peripherals is that they’re designed to blend in with your Apple devices, so this dongle is comes in a space gray metal enclosure with rounded edges that doesn’t look out of place or stick out like a sore thumb when plugged into your iPad.
—Brenda Stolyar, WIRED, 26 Nov. 2023
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'peripheral.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near peripheral
Cite this Entry
“Peripheral.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/peripheral. Accessed 18 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
peripheral
1 of 2 adjective
pe·riph·er·al
pə-ˈrif-(ə-)rəl
1
: of, relating to, located in, or forming a periphery
2
: auxiliary entry 1, supplementary
peripheral equipment
peripherally
adverb
-ē
peripheral
2 of 2 noun
: a device connected to a computer to provide communication (as input and output) or extra storage capacity
Medical Definition
peripheral
adjective
pe·riph·er·al
pə-ˈrif-(ə-)rəl
1
: of, relating to, involving, forming, or located near a periphery or surface part (as of the body)
2
: of, relating to, affecting, or being part of the peripheral nervous system
peripheral nerves
3
: of, relating to, or being the outer part of the visual field
good peripheral vision
4
: of, relating to, or being blood in the systemic circulation
peripheral lymphocytes
peripheral blood
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