radar
[ rey-dahr ]
/ ˈreɪ dɑr /
noun
Electronics. a device for determining the presence and location of an object by measuring the time for the echo of a radio wave to return from it and the direction from which it returns.
a means or sense of awareness or perception: lobbyists working under the media's radar.
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RELATED WORDS
Nearby words
rad 1, rad-lib, rad., rad/s, rada, radar, radar astronomy, radar beacon, radar gun, radar picket, radar telescope
Origin of radar
1940–45, Americanism; ra(dio) d(etecting) a(nd) r(anging)
Related formsan·ti·ra·dar, noun, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for radar
British Dictionary definitions for radar
radar
/ (ˈreɪdɑː) /
noun
a method for detecting the position and velocity of a distant object, such as an aircraft A narrow beam of extremely high-frequency radio pulses is transmitted and reflected by the object back to the transmitter, the signal being displayed on a radarscope. The direction of the reflected beam and the time between transmission and reception of a pulse determine the position of the objectFormer name: radiolocation
the equipment used in such detection
Word Origin for radar
C20 ra (dio) d (etecting) a (nd) r (anging)
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 radar
radar
"electronic system for locating objects by means of radio waves," 1941, acronym (more or less) from radio detecting and ranging. The U.S. choice, it won out over British radiolocation. Figurative from 1950.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
Science definitions for radar
radar
[ rā′där ]
A method of detecting distant objects and determining their position, speed, material composition, or other characteristics by causing radio waves to be reflected from them and analyzing the reflected waves. The waves can be converted into images, as for use on weather maps.
The equipment used in such detecting. See also Doppler effect lidar sonar.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Culture definitions for radar
radar
A method of finding the position and velocity of an object by bouncing a radio wave off it and analyzing the reflected wave. Radar is an acronym for radio detection and ranging.
Note
Police use radar techniques to determine the speed of automobiles.
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.