component

[ kuhm-poh-nuhnt, kom- ]

noun

1. a constituent part; element; ingredient.
2. a part of a mechanical or electrical system:

   They checked the pads, rotors, and other components of my car's brake system.

3. Physics. the projection of a vector quantity, as force or velocity, along an axis.
4. Physical Chemistry. one of the set of the minimum number of chemical constituents by which every phase of a given system can be described.
5. Mathematics.
   1. a connected subset of a set, not contained in any other connected subset of the set.
   2. a coordinate of a vector.
6. Linguistics.
   1. one of the major subdivisions of a generative grammar: Compare level ( def 17 ).

      base component;

      transformational component;

      semantic component;

      phonological component.

   2. a feature determined by componential analysis.

adjective

1. being or serving as an element (in something larger); composing; constituent:

   the component parts of a computer system.

component

/ kəmˈpəʊnənt; ˌkɒmpəˈnɛnʃəl /

noun

1. a constituent part or aspect of something more complex

   a component of a car

2. Also calledelement any electrical device, such as a resistor, that has distinct electrical characteristics and that may be connected to other electrical devices to form a circuit
3. maths
   1. one of a set of two or more vectors whose resultant is a given vector
   2. the projection of this given vector onto a specified line
4. one of the minimum number of chemically distinct constituents necessary to describe fully the composition of each phase in a system See phase rule

adjective

1. forming or functioning as a part or aspect; constituent

Derived Forms

• componential, adjective

Other Words From

• com·po·nen·tial [kom-p, uh, -, nen, -sh, uh, l], compo·nental adjective
• com·ponent·ed adjective
• subcom·ponent noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of component¹

First recorded in 1555–65; from Latin compōnent- (stem of compōnēns, present participle of compōnere “to put together”), equivalent to com- com- + pōn(ere) “to put” + -ent- -ent

Word History and Origins

Origin of component¹

C17: from Latin compōnere to put together, from pōnere to place, put

Synonym Study

See element.

Example Sentences

Its most important components have been transformed; Hezbollah badly damaged and the Assad regime gone.

From BBC

SpaceX wants its spacecraft to be rapidly reusable, and the quickest way to achieve that is to bring the rocket's components back to where they started.

From BBC

Scientists have used 3D-printed components to create a robotic instrument that can autonomously monitor the earliest stages of development in any aquatic species.

From Science Daily

The resulting leg keeps heavier components close to the 'body', while a combination of springs and motors mimics powerful avian tendons and muscles.

From Science Daily

The immunotherapy leverages dendritic cells, critical components of the immune system that normally identify infection and mobilize other elements of immunity to repel a microbial attack.

From Science Daily

Related Words

• factor
• ingredient
• item
• peripheral
• piece
• segment
• unit