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activator

[ak-tuh-vey-ter]
See more synonyms for activator on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. a person or thing that activates.
  2. Chemistry, Biochemistry. a catalyst.
  3. any impurity in a mineral that causes luminescence.Compare inhibitor(def 3).
  4. Orthodontics. a removable appliance, usually of hard plastic, that is worn in the mouth instead of a fixed appliance to help align the teeth and improve the relationship of the lower jaw to the upper.
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Origin of activator

activate + -or2
Related formsnon·ac·ti·va·tor, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for activator

Historical Examples

  • They may have been, and the use of the activator may have been extorted from one of them.

    Temple Trouble

    Henry Beam Piper

  • Finally, he poked the activator bar, and watched as the machine spat out tape.

    The Players

    Everett B. Cole

  • The Black Doctor closed his eyes wearily and flipped an activator switch.

    Contamination Crew

    Alan Edward Nourse

  • Nargyll wants to move your ship into one of the sheds, but the activator key's gone.

activator in Medicine

activator

(ăk′tə-vā′tər)
n.
  1. An agent that renders another substance active or accelerates a process or reaction.
  2. The fragment produced by chemical cleavage of a proactivator that induces the enzymatic activity of another substance.
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The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.