transponder
or tran·spon·dor
[ tran-spon-der ]
/ trænˈspɒn dər /
noun
a radio, radar, or sonar transceiver that automatically transmits a signal upon reception of a designated incoming signal.
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Origin of transponder
First recorded in 1940–45; trans(mitter) + (res)ponder
Words nearby transponder
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020
Example sentences from the Web for transponder
British Dictionary definitions for transponder
transponder
transpondor
/ (trænˈspɒndə) /
noun
a type of radio or radar transmitter-receiver that transmits signals automatically when it receives predetermined signals
the receiver and transmitter in a communications or broadcast satellite, relaying received signals back to earth
Word Origin for transponder
C20: from transmitter + responder
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 transponder
transponder
[ trăn-spŏn′dər ]
A radio or radar transmitter and receiver that responds to an incoming signal either by broadcasting its own predetermined signal (as in aircraft identification systems) or by relaying the incoming signal at a different frequency (as in satellite communications).
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.