spectrometer

[ spek-trom-i-ter ]

nounOptics.
  1. an optical device for measuring wavelengths, deviation of refracted rays, and angles between faces of a prism, especially an instrument (prism spectrometer ) consisting of a slit through which light passes, a collimator, a prism that deviates the light, and a telescope through which the deviated light is viewed and examined.

Compare Meanings

Click for a side-by-side comparison of meanings. Use the word comparison feature to learn the differences between similar and commonly confused words.

Origin of spectrometer

1
First recorded in 1870–75; spectro- + -meter

Other words from spectrometer

  • spec·tro·met·ric [spek-truh-me-trik], /ˌspɛk trəˈmɛ trɪk/, adjective
  • spec·trom·e·try, noun

Words Nearby spectrometer

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use spectrometer in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for spectrometer

spectrometer

/ (spɛkˈtrɒmɪtə) /


noun
  1. any instrument for producing a spectrum, esp one in which wavelength, energy, intensity, etc, can be measured: See also mass spectrometer

Derived forms of spectrometer

  • spectrometric (ˌspɛktrəʊˈmɛtrɪk), adjective
  • spectrometry, noun

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

Scientific definitions for spectrometer

spectrometer

[ spĕk-trŏmĭ-tər ]


  1. A spectroscope equipped with devices for measuring the frequencies of the radiation observed by it.

The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.