rheostat

American

[ree-uh-stat] / ˈri əˌstæt /

noun

Electricity.

an adjustable resistor so constructed that its resistance may be changed without opening the circuit in which it is connected, thereby controlling the current in the circuit.

rheostat British

/ ˈriːəˌstæt /

noun

a variable resistance, usually consisting of a coil of wire with a terminal at one end and a sliding contact that moves along the coil to tap off the current

"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

rheostat Scientific

/ rē′ə-stăt′ /

See under resistor

Other Word Forms

rheostatic

adjective

Etymology

Origin of rheostat

First recorded in 1843; rheo- + -stat

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

rheostat

In a screen to identify key regulators of this process, retinoic acid, the biologically active form of Vitamin A, surfaced as a surprising rheostat.

From Science Daily ● Mar. 7, 2024

Sorry, Vlad, but the rheostat didn’t work this time.

From Washington Post ● Nov. 29, 2018

No candidate spans the rheostat more than Gingrich, who can go from sweet to sour in seconds.

From Slate ● Nov. 15, 2011

Founded in 1903, the company started with an idea for a rheostat dreamed up by Lynde Bradley.

From Time Magazine Archive

His eyes don't leave the diagram, and he taps the sheet and says, "Get a reading on this rheostat, David. If the dial's out of alignment, that could double or triple the current getting past."

From "Things Not Seen" by Andrew Clements

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023