page_title: Stylus
section_title: Etymology
hierarchical_section_title: Stylus / Etymology
caption_attribution_description: English: 4 examples of medieval styli: two large iron examples, a smaller one made of brass, the smallest stylus made of bone. Nederlands: 4 voobeelden van Middeleeuwse styli of schrijfstiften. Twee grote ijzeren styli, een kleinere messing stylus en de kleinste stylus is gemaakt van been.
context_page_description: A stylus is a writing utensil or a small tool for some other form of marking or shaping, for example, in pottery. It can also be a computer accessory that is used to assist in navigating or providing more precision when using touchscreens. It usually refers to a narrow elongated staff, similar to a modern ballpoint pen. Many styluses are heavily curved to be held more easily. Another widely used writing tool is the stylus used by blind users in conjunction with the slate for punching out the dots in Braille.
context_section_description: The English word stylus has two plurals: styli and styluses. The original Latin word was spelled stilus; the spelling stylus arose from an erroneous connection with Greek στυ̑λος (stylos), "pillar".
  The Latin word had several meanings, including "a long, sharply pointed piece of metal; the stem of a plant; a pointed instrument for incising letters; the stylus (as used in literary composition), 'pen'". The last meaning is the origin of style in the literary sense. The Latin word is probably derived from the Indo-European root *stei- "to prick", also found in the words stimulus "a goad, stimulus" and instigare "to incite, instigate".
caption: Four examples of medieval styluses for writing on wax tablets. Two are made of iron, one brass and one bone stylus.
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