contactless

English

Etymology

From contact +‎ -less.

Adjective

contactless (not comparable)

1. That does not use or require contact in order to happen or operate.
   1. (of a delivery, exchange, etc., of physical goods) Conducted without human-to-human contact to improve ease of use or reduce the potential spread of a contagious disease; contact-free.
      • 2020, Noreena Hertz, chapter 5, in The Lonely Century, Hodder & Stoughton, →ISBN:

        Contactless commerce, of which Amazon Go is at the extreme end, was of course already by the autumn of 2019 a growing trend, what with increasing numbers of self-checkout counters and websites and apps that allowed us to have everything from groceries to pet supplies to prescription medication delivered right to our doorsteps.

      2. (of transactions) Happening without physical contact at the point of sale.

         Hyponyms: cashless, wireless

         • 2019 October 23, Barry Doe, Rail, page 64:

           TfL has been saying for a few years that Oyster will eventually be withdrawn, but not until contactless payments can offer railcard discounts.

2. That has no contact(s).

   Coordinate terms: (electrical) brushless, wireless

Derived terms

• contactless card
• contactlessly
• contactlessness

 

Translations

not needing contact

• Danish: kontaktløs
• German: kontaktlos (de), kontaktfrei, berührungslos (de)
• Italian: contactless (it)
• Polish: bezdotykowy, bezstykowy (pl)
• Welsh: digyffwrdd

Noun

contactless (uncountable)

1. A technology for paying for goods etc. while physically present at the point of interaction but without the need for physical contact.

   Hyponym: cashlessness

   • 2012, Graham Flower, Phil Fawcett, Stuart Harle, Banking: In Search of Relevance: A New Model for a New Reality, page 183:

     The motivation for using contactless is clear: it is most popular for people in a rush (58 per cent), people with a queue behind them (30 per cent) and those in busy places with lots of people (26 per cent).

   • 2020, Noreena Hertz, chapter 1, in The Lonely Century, Hodder & Stoughton, →ISBN:

     Even before the coronavirus struck, contactless was starting to become our way of life, our active choice.

Italian

Etymology

Unadapted borrowing from English contactless.

Adjective

contactless (invariable)

1. contactless (That does not use or require contact in order to operate.)

Noun

contactless m (invariable)

1. contactless