contactless

[ kon-takt-lis ]

adjective

1. noting or relating to RFID technology or devices that use radio waves to relay identifying information to an electronic reader, so that the device does not need to be in direct contact with the reader:

   contactless credit and debit cards.

2. of or relating to an activity or interaction in which people do not touch one another or come into close proximity:

   contactless food delivery.

contactless

/ ˈkɒntæktlɪs /

adjective

1. without contacts
2. referring to payment systems which use RFID technology and do not require the customer's signature or pin number

Word History and Origins

Origin of contactless¹

First recorded in 2000–05; contact + -less

Example Sentences

A London-style contactless payment system with daily and weekly payment caps would be introduced in March, the mayor said.

From BBC

For ticketing, new technologies including printable barcodes and reusable contactless cards are considered more environmentally friendly and potentially more convenient.

From BBC

She argues there are now so many different ways of validating a rail ticket - for example, QR codes presented on phone screens, tickets printed at home, prepaid contactless cards - that there is less need to retain magstripe technology than ever before.

From BBC

He points at London’s contactless payment system for tickets - which works across local railways, the underground and buses - as being a world-leading example of how a good ticketing system functions.

From BBC

Tipping in many industries has evolved from the days of leaving spare change on a table, with card and contactless payments now the norm.

From BBC