conductor

American  

[kuhn-duhk-ter] / kənˈdʌk tər /

noun

1. a person who conducts; a leader, guide, director, or manager.

2. an employee on a bus, train, or other public conveyance, who is in charge of the conveyance and its passengers, collects fares or tickets, etc.

3. a person who directs an orchestra or chorus, communicating a specific interpretation of the music to the performers by motions of a baton or the hands

4. a substance, body, or device that readily conducts heat, electricity, sound, etc..

   Copper is a good conductor of electricity.

5. lightning rod.

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conductor British  

/ kənˈdʌktə, kənˈdʌktrɪs /

noun

1. an official on a bus who collects fares, checks tickets, etc

2. Also called (esp US): director.  a person who conducts an orchestra, choir, etc

3. a person who leads or guides

4. a railway official in charge of a train

5. a substance, body, or system that conducts electricity, heat, etc

6. See lightning conductor

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conductor Scientific  

/ kən-dŭk′tər /

1. A material or an object that conducts heat, electricity, light, or sound. Electrical conductors contain electric charges (usually electrons) that are relatively free to move through the material; a voltage applied across the conductor therefore creates an electric current. Insulators (electrical nonconductors) contain no charges that move when subject to a voltage.

2. Compare insulator See also resistance superconductivity

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conductor Cultural  

1. A material through which electric current (see also current) can pass. In general, metals are good conductors. Copper or aluminum is normally used to conduct electricity in commercial and household systems. (Compare insulator.)

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Other Word Forms

• conductorial adjective
• conductorship noun
• conductress noun
• multiconductor adjective
• preconductor noun

Etymology

Origin of conductor

First recorded in 1400–50; from Latin ( conduce, -tor ); replacing late Middle English cond(u)itour from Anglo-French, equivalent to Middle French conduiteur from Latin as above; conduit

Example Sentences

Conlon, who will be named conductor laureate upon his departure, is set to close the season on a high note with Mozart’s madcap comedy “The Marriage of Figaro.”

From Los Angeles Times

Musk told Tesla investors at the time that he envisioned xAI functioning as an "orchestra conductor" for Tesla factories employing autonomous robots.

From BBC

Throughout the remainder of the segment, Hill acted as a conductor, calling on each musician to sing their parts.

From Los Angeles Times

The whistle blows and the conductor calls for departure.

From Literature

Helper T cells, which act as the immune system's conductors -- detecting health threats, activating other immune cells and sustaining the immune responses over time -- play a central coordinating role.

From Science Daily

Related Words

• director
• maestro
• manager
• master
• supervisor