reactor

American  

[ree-ak-ter] / riˈæk tər /

noun

1. a person or thing that reacts or undergoes reaction.

2. Electricity. a device whose primary purpose is to introduce reactance into a circuit.

3. Immunology, Veterinary Medicine. a patient or animal that reacts positively towards a foreign material.

4. Physics. nuclear reactor.

5. Chemistry. (especially in industry) a large container, as a vat, for processes in which the substances involved undergo a chemical reaction.

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reactor British  

/ rɪˈæktə /

noun

1. chem a substance, such as a reagent, that undergoes a reaction

2. short for nuclear reactor

3. a vessel, esp one in industrial use, in which a chemical reaction takes place

4. a coil of low resistance and high inductance that introduces reactance into a circuit

5. med a person sensitive to a particular drug or agent

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Other Word Forms

• nonreactor noun

Etymology

Origin of reactor

First recorded in 1885–90; 1940–45 reactor for def. 4; react + -or ²

Example Sentences

Writing in Nature Communications, the team describes how they used a miniature electrochemical reactor to produce pores that approach subnanometer dimensions.

From Science Daily

But mines need to step up production to serve the new reactors being planned.

From The Wall Street Journal

The surge in demand for data centers and nuclear power to keep them running is stressing the global uranium supply, raising concerns about a potential shortage of fuel for reactors.

From The Wall Street Journal

The move is a reversal from a plan for 2019 to 2024, which had called for shutting down several of France's nuclear reactors.

From Barron's

A nuclear-power startup said it has found a workaround for the industry’s twin stumbling blocks: the expense and time it takes to build reactors.

From The Wall Street Journal