operator

American  

[op-uh-ray-ter] / ˈɒp əˌreɪ tər /

noun

• operators
  plural

1. a person who operates a machine, apparatus, or the like.

   a telegraph operator.

2. a person who operates a telephone switchboard, especially for a telephone company.

3. a person who manages a working or industrial establishment, enterprise, or system.

   the operators of a mine.

4. a person who trades in securities, especially speculatively or on a large scale.

5. a person who performs a surgical operation; a surgeon.

6. Mathematics.

   1. a symbol for expressing a mathematical operation.

   2. a function, especially one transforming a function, set, etc., into another.

      a differential operator.

7. Informal.

   1. a person who accomplishes goals or purposes by devious means; faker; fraud.

   2. a person who is adroit at overcoming, avoiding, or evading difficulties, regulations, or restrictions.

   3. a person who is extremely successful with or smoothly persuasive to potential sexual or romantic partners.

8. Genetics. a segment of DNA that interacts with a regulatory molecule, preventing transcription of the adjacent region.

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operator British  

/ ˈɒpəˌreɪtə /

noun

1. a person who operates a machine, instrument, etc, esp, a person who makes connections on a telephone switchboard or at an exchange

2. a person who owns or operates an industrial or commercial establishment

3. a speculator, esp one who operates on currency or stock markets

4. informal a person who manipulates affairs and other people

5. maths any symbol, term, letter, etc, used to indicate or express a specific operation or process, such as Δ (the differential operator)

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operator Scientific  

/ ŏp′ə-rā′tər /

1. Mathematics A function, especially one from a set to itself, such as differentiation of a differentiable function or rotation of a vector. In quantum mechanics, measurable quantities of a physical system, such as position and momentum, are related to unique operators applied to the wave equation describing the system.

2. A logical operator.

3. Genetics A segment of chromosomal DNA that regulates the activity of the structural genes of an operon by interacting with a specific repressor.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• preoperator
  noun
• self-operator
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• operators
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of operator

First recorded in 1590–1600; from Late Latin, equivalent to operā(rī) “to work, effect” ( see operate) + Latin -tor noun suffix ( see -tor)

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Explanation

An operator is a person who runs a machine, equipment, or a vehicle. If you want to be a jackhammer operator some day, you might hope to work on a road crew of for a construction company. An operator operates, or controls, something. You could be a radio operator, a heavy machinery operator, or even a telephone operator — or you can be the operator, or manager, of a business. If you start your own dog walking company, you can call yourself an "owner-operator." The Latin root of both operator and operate is operari, "to work," and "to cause."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

operator operators

In the complaint, filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court, Isayan alleged that Knott’s Berry Farm’s operator was engaging in “drip pricing,” or not disclosing fees consumers must pay until late in the purchase process.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 13, 2026

He adds that military convoys from both sides had moved towards Sheraro, while a motorcycle operator in the southern town of Yechila says military checkpoints are still active.

From BBC ● Nov. 13, 2026

Most regulation checks whether a control exists, not how exposed a system is or how fast an operator can contain a flaw.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 12, 2026

The main operator in the area since 2021 is Chinese-owned Zimbabwe Chenxi Investments, which lists a son of President Emmerson Mnangagwa as chairman.

From Barron's ● Nov. 12, 2026

Eddie lives in a trailer park with his mother, Rebecca Ball, an unemployed machine operator.

From "The Million Dollar Shot" by Dan Gutman

Huang’s exit also hit the “neocloud” companies, the newer AI data center operators that rent out computing power, according to Steven Tian, research director at the Yale Chief Executive Leadership Institute.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 12, 2026

For shows at smaller events, brokers on resale sites are marking up the prices for tickets, even though they don’t own them, venue operators say.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 11, 2026

“Rips represent a natural new vertical for online sports betting and iGaming operators, given similar gaming or lottery mechanics and customer demographics,” the analysts said.

From MarketWatch ● Nov. 11, 2026

The plane was lifted into place on 20 October, with five volunteers helping him out as well as the crane operators.

From BBC ● Nov. 9, 2026

Anxious to stabilize the spent fuel pools, operators ran four more helicopter flights on the evening of March 17, but radiation levels above the reactors were still too high.

From "Meltdown" by Deirdre Langeland

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