an instrument for writing. see style, n., 1.-that needle-shaped part at the tip of the playing arm of phonograph which sits in the groove of a phonograph record while it is turning, to detect the undulations in the phonograph groove and convert them into vibrations which are transmitted to a system (since 1920 electronic) which converts the signal into sound; also called needle.  the stylus is frequently composed of metal or diamond.-the needle-like device used to cut the grooves which record the sound on the original disc during recording of a phonograph record.-a pen-shaped pointing device used to specify the cursor position on a graphics tablet.