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chronometer

[kruh-nom-i-ter]
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noun
  1. a timepiece or timing device with a special mechanism for ensuring and adjusting its accuracy, for use in determining longitude at sea or for any purpose where very exact measurement of time is required.
  2. any timepiece, especially a wristwatch, designed for the highest accuracy.
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Origin of chronometer

First recorded in 1705–15; chrono- + -meter
Related formschron·o·met·ric [kron-uh-me-trik] /ˌkrɒn əˈmɛ trɪk/, chron·o·met·ri·cal, adjectivechron·o·met·ri·cal·ly, adverb
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words

timepiece, clock, hourglass, metronome, timer

Examples from the Web for chronometer

Historical Examples

  • We were now questioned about our longitude, and whether we had a chronometer.

    Ned Myers

    James Fenimore Cooper

  • The captain kept his eyes fixed on the chronometer in his hand.

  • The chronometer on the mantel was obscured by a thick layer of dust.

    Cap'n Eri

    Joseph Crosby Lincoln

  • Faces isn't the chronometer to steer your boat to the good ones.

  • He stood with a strained tautness, staring feverishly at the chronometer.

    Competition

    James Causey

British Dictionary definitions for chronometer

chronometer

noun
  1. a timepiece designed to be accurate in all conditions of temperature, pressure, etc, used esp at sea
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Derived Formschronometric (ˌkrɒnəˈmɛtrɪk) or chronometrical, adjectivechronometrically, adverb
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

Word Origin and History for chronometer

n.

1735, from chrono- "time" + -meter. Related: Chronometric.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
chronometer in Science

chronometer

[krə-nŏm′ĭ-tər]
  1. An extremely accurate clock or other timepiece. Chronometers are used in scientific experiments, navigation, and astronomical observations. It was the invention of a chronometer capable of being used aboard ship, in 1762, that allowed navigators for the first time to accurately determine their longitude at sea.
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The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.