ballpoint pen

writing implement

Also known as: biro

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Last updated

July 23, 2026

Quick Summary

A ballpoint pen is a writing implement that uses a small rotating metal ball as its writing point. This ball is continuously supplied with ink from an inner reservoir and transfers it to the writing surface as it rolls. While commercial models appeared in the late 19th century, the first satisfactory model was patented by László Bíró, a Hungarian inventor living in Argentina. His design, often called a "biro," gained popularity in the late 1930s and became widely used globally by the mid-1940s.12

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Patrick Joseph Frawley, Jr.
…purchasing a bankrupt fabricator of ballpoint pen components for $18,000. Ballpoint pens, which had been invented in the mid-1930s, were unpopular at the time: they leaked, the ink smeared, and most of them were expensive. By sponsoring the development of a quick-drying ink and a leakproof pen design, the Frawley…
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…purchasing a bankrupt fabricator of ballpoint pen components for $18,000. Ballpoint pens, which had been invented in the mid-1930s, were unpopular at the time: they leaked, the ink smeared, and most of them were expensive. By sponsoring the development of a quick-drying ink and a leakproof pen design, the Frawley…
Read More

pen
Ballpoint pens date from the late 19th century. Commercial models appeared in 1895, but the first satisfactory model was patented by Lázló Bíró, a Hungarian living in Argentina. His ballpoint pen, commonly called the “biro,” became popular in Great Britain during the late 1930s, and…
Read More
Ballpoint pens date from the late 19th century. Commercial models appeared in 1895, but the first satisfactory model was patented by Lázló Bíró, a Hungarian living in Argentina. His ballpoint pen, commonly called the “biro,” became popular in Great Britain during the late 1930s, and…
Read More

László Bíró
…biro in Britain and the ballpoint pen in the United States.
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…biro in Britain and the ballpoint pen in the United States.
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