generator
noun/ˈdʒɛnəɹeɪtə(ɹ)/
Etymology From Latin, from past participle of genero (“beget, father”), equivalent to generate + -or.
8 senses
- 1An apparatus in which vapour or gas is formed from a…
- 2The principal sound or sounds by which others are…
- 3An interval that is repeatedly stacked to obtain other…
- 4An element of a group that is used in the presentation…
- 5One of the lines of a ruled surface; more generally, an…
- 6A subordinate piece of code which, given some initial…
- 7A piece of apparatus, equipment, etc, to convert or…
- 8Especially, a machine that converts mechanical energy…
› One who, or that which, generates, begets…
Chemistry, Natural sciences, Physical sciences An apparatus in which vapour or gas is formed from a liquid or solid by means of heat or chemical process, as a steam boiler, gas retort etc.
Entertainment, Lifestyle, Music The principal sound or sounds by which others are produced; the fundamental note or root of the common chord; -- see also generating tone.
Entertainment, Lifestyle, Music An interval that is repeatedly stacked to obtain other pitches in tuning systems or scales.
Mathematics, Sciences An element of a group that is used in the presentation of the group: one of the elements from which the others can be inferred with the given relators.
Geometry, Mathematics, Sciences One of the lines of a ruled surface; more generally, an element of some family of linear spaces.
Computing, Engineering, Mathematics, Natural sciences, Physical sciences, Programming, Sciences A subordinate piece of code which, given some initial parameters, will generate multiple output values on request.
- When you come across something that looks like a listcomp but is surrounded by parentheses, you're looking at a generator: […]2016, Paul Barry, Head First Python: A Brain-Friendly Guide, O'Reilly, →ISBN, page 508:
A piece of apparatus, equipment, etc, to convert or change energy from one form to another.
Especially, a machine that converts mechanical energy into electrical energy.
- In 1915, concurrent with the L.S.W.R. electrification, power was supplied from the Waterloo sub-station, and the old equipment held in reserve. Some generator sets were removed, and motor generators installed for standby lighting and other services.1958 August 23, T. S. Lascelles, “Diamond Jubilee of the Waterloo & City Railway”, in Railway Magazine, page 523:
- Heating in the passenger sections is by electricity obtained from the main generator. When heating is dictated by the operation of a thermostat in the roof of the motor coach, engine idling speed is 600 r.p.m. instead of the normal 450 r.p.m. in order to produce a high enough generator voltage output at rest.1962 December 23, “The Oxted Line diesel-electric multiple-units”, in Modern Railways, page 383:
2 more examples
- Using a tractor fan, shock absorbers, PVC pipes, a bicycle frame and anything else he could lay his hands on, he then built a rudimentary wooden tower, plonked his home-made generator on the top, and eventually got one, and then four bulbs to light up.2009 October 2, John Vidal, “'Tilting at windmills: the boy who harnessed the wind'”, in The Guardian, →ISSN:
- WIND Since 2001, Taipower has installed eight wind-powered generators on Penghu, and in 2004 the main island's first commercial wind farm — located in Shihmen Township, Taipei County, and built by Taipower — went online.2010, Taiwan: Recent Economic and Political Developments Yearbook, International Business Publications, →ISBN, →OCLC, page 130:
- Antonyms
- extinguisher
- Derived terms
31 terms
aerogenerator, character generator, chemical oxygen generator, clock generator, Cockcroft-Walton generator, cogenerator, CW generator, diesel generator, economic scenario generator, engine generator, engine-generator, finite generator, function generator, gas generator, hydroelectric generator, Kipp generator, linear congruential generator, Marx generator, microgenerator, nanogenerator, pseudorandom number generator, pseudo-random number generator, random number generator, starch generator, steam generator, traffic generator, turbogenerator, turbo-generator, Van de Graaff generator, vortex generator, wind generator