generator

American  

[jen-uh-rey-ter] / ˈdʒɛn əˌreɪ tər /

noun

1. a machine that converts one form of energy into another, especially mechanical energy into electrical energy, as a dynamo, or electrical energy into sound, as an acoustic generator.

2. a person or thing that generates.

3. Chemistry. an apparatus for producing a gas or vapor.

4. Mathematics.

   1. an element or one of a set of elements from which a specified mathematical object can be formed by applying certain operations.

   2. an element, as a line, that generates a figure.

5. Computers. a program that produces a particular type of output on demand, as random numbers, an application program, or a report.

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generator British  

/ ˈdʒɛnəˌreɪtə /

noun

1. physics

   1. any device for converting mechanical energy into electrical energy by electromagnetic induction, esp a large one as in a power station

   2. a device for producing a voltage electrostatically

   3. any device that converts one form of energy into another form

      an acoustic generator

2. an apparatus for producing a gas

3. a person or thing that generates

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generator Cultural  

1. A device that produces electric current (see also current), usually by rotating a conductor in a magnetic field, thereby generating current through electromagnetic induction. This sort of generator produces an alternating current (AC).

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Etymology

Origin of generator

1640–50; < Latin generātor producer, equivalent to generā ( re ) ( generate ) + -tor -tor

Explanation

If your neighborhood loses power, it’s good to have your own generator so you can keep the lights on. A generator is machine that produces power. Generator can also mean someone who creates something. If you come up with lots of ideas, you are an idea generator. Not so helpful during a blackout unless you had the idea to get a portable generator. This kind of generator makes electricity out of some other type of power (like wind power) or fuel (like propane or gas). In Latin, generator means "begetter or producer," from generare, "to bring forth."

Example Sentences

The company has discontinued its video generator Sora and scaled back its agentic shopping initiatives.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 10, 2026

Tesla has been a consistent generator of free cash flow, but it isn’t expected to produce positive free cash flow this year.

From Barron's • Apr. 6, 2026

OpenAI is shutting down its video generator Sora less than six months after it launched, and just three months since it signed a deal with Disney.

From Slate • Mar. 30, 2026

They will insert their own likeness into an AI movie generator so they can watch a movie with themselves as the main character.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 23, 2026

That night, when the power went off, her generator would not come on, and she suspected that her driver, Ayo, had been sold diesel spiked with kerosene.

From "Americanah" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie