Peripherals

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. Additional devices that can be connected to a computer to enhance its capabilities
2. Equipment such as printers, keyboards, and mice that provide input or output functions for a computer system
3. Accessories that extend the functionality of computers, allowing them to interact with users or other devices

Etymology: "Peripherals" is the plural of "peripheral," which began as a term for the outer edge of something. Its ancestry runs back to ancient Greek, where "periphereia" meant a circumference or outline, built from "peri" ("around") and "pherein" ("to carry"), so the image is of something carried around the outside of a shape. Latin borrowed the idea as "peripheria," and the word passed through Middle French "periferie" into English as "periphery," used for the outer boundary of a surface or region. The adjective "peripheral" was formed in English by adding the suffix "-al" to "periphery," giving the sense of something lying on the outer edge rather than at the centre. That sense of being secondary to a central core is what later made the word a natural fit for computing. Devices like printers, keyboards and monitors orbit the main machine without being its core, and so the plural noun "peripherals" came to name them.

Synonyms: accessories, attachments, peripheral devices, add-ons, supplements