Origin: French suffix -ier
Supplier has 2 different meanings across 1 category:
One who supplies; a provider.
"After our main vendor went out of business, we had to find a new supplier for all our office paper."
In plain English: A supplier is a person or company that provides goods or services to another business.
"The grocery store contacted their main supplier to restock the shelves before the holiday rush."
Usage: A supplier provides goods or services to another party, often in a business-to-business relationship where the buyer relies on them for inventory. Unlike general synonyms like vendor or merchant, this term emphasizes the ongoing role of delivering necessary items rather than just selling finished products directly to consumers.
The word supplier is formed by adding the suffix -er to supply. It originally meant one who provides a supply and has retained that same meaning in modern English.