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apparatus

[ ap-uh-rat-uhs, -rey-tuhs ]
/ ˌæp əˈræt əs, -ˈreɪ təs /
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noun, plural ap·pa·rat·us, ap·pa·rat·us·es.
a group or combination of instruments, machinery, tools, materials, etc., having a particular function or intended for a specific use: Our town has excellent fire-fighting apparatus.
any complex instrument or mechanism for a particular purpose.
any system or systematic organization of activities, functions, processes, etc., directed toward a specific goal: the apparatus of government; espionage apparatus.
Physiology. a group of structurally different organs working together in the performance of a particular function: the digestive apparatus.
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Origin of apparatus

1620–30; <Latin apparātus equipment, originally the act of equipping, preparation, equivalent to apparā(re) to prepare (ap-ap-1 + parāre;see prepare) + -tus suffix of v. action
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use apparatus in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for apparatus

apparatus
/ (ˌæpəˈreɪtəs, -ˈrɑːtəs, ˈæpəˌreɪtəs) /

noun plural -ratus or -ratuses
a collection of instruments, machines, tools, parts, or other equipment used for a particular purpose
a machine having a specific functionbreathing apparatus
the means by which something operates; organizationthe apparatus of government
anatomy any group of organs having a specific function

Word Origin for apparatus

C17: from Latin, from apparāre to make ready
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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