pedometer

[puh-dom-i-ter]

noun

1. an instrument worn by a walker or runner for recording the number of steps taken, thereby showing approximately the distance traveled.

pedometer

/ pɪˈdɒmɪtə /

noun

1. a device containing a pivoted weight that records the number of steps taken in walking and hence the distance travelled

Other Word Forms

• pedometrical adjective
• pedometrically adverb
• pedometrist noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of pedometer¹

1723; < French pédomètre, equivalent to péd- (learned use of Latin ped- foot (stem of pēs ); pedi- ) + -omètre ( -o-, -meter )

Example Sentences

“The whole idea behind the 10,000 steps was actually a marketing campaign for a company in Japan that developed a pedometer,” said David Raichlen, professor of biological sciences and anthropology at USC.

From Los Angeles Times

All participants, including those in the no exercise group, wore pedometers to measure daily steps.

From Science Daily

When a Japanese company invented the first pedometer in the 1960s, they called it the “10,000-step meter” because the Japanese character for 10,000 looks like a person walking.

From Seattle Times

The researchers sent participants a kit with pedometers, blood pressure monitors, and step diaries for participants to log how much they were walking each day.

From Science Daily

He works out at a local gym, puts 18,000 steps on his pedometer every day and hopes to study hard to land his dream job as an automotive engineer.

From Seattle Times