1. a small digital camera that is either built into a computer or attached to one,
1.nounB1
Definition
a small digital camera that is either built into a computer or attached to one, used to send live video and audio over the internet so that other people can see and hear what is happening
Example
Haruto turned on his webcam so his classmates could see his science project.
collocation: turn on a webcam
During the video call, Quan's webcam stopped working right before his interview.
Ayana bought a ring light to improve the picture from her webcam.
The webcam light turns on automatically whenever the video app opens.
collocation: webcam light
Stefan adjusted his webcam so that the sunlight did not hide his face.
the full written form of the word, used much less often in everyday speech
Synonym discussion
Sense: noun/1
A camera is the most general term — it captures still images or video, but may not connect to the internet at all. A video camera specifically records moving pictures, usually to a memory card or hard drive rather than streaming live. A webcam differs by being designed for live internet transmission, typically built into or plugged into a computer. Web camera is simply the full version of the word webcam, but it sounds somewhat formal and is rarely used in everyday conversation — almost everyone says webcam instead.
The word webcam was formed in the 1990s by blending web (short for the World Wide Web) and camera. The camera part traces back through Latin camera (meaning 'vault' or 'arched room') to Greek kamara ('vaulted chamber').