voltmeter

[ vohlt-mee-ter ]

/ ˈvoʊltˌmi tər /

noun Electricity.

a calibrated instrument for measuring the potential difference between two points.

Nearby words

voltammetry, voltampere, volte, volte-face, volti, voltmeter, volturno, volturnus, voluble, volume, volume index

Origin of voltmeter

First recorded in 1880–85; volt¹ + -meter

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for voltmeter

In a Weston voltmeter of regular type, the maximum current required for a full scale-deflection is only 0.01 ampere.
Inventors at Work|George Iles
Next we read the voltage impressed on the grid by reading the voltmeter in the grid circuit.
Letters of a Radio-Engineer to His Son|John Mills
By not so much as by a vibration of the voltmeter needle, did the apparatus betray any strain as the load mounted swiftly.
The Ultimate Weapon|John Wood Campbell
Usually we describe this condition by saying that a voltmeter has a high resistance.
Letters of a Radio-Engineer to His Son|John Mills

We read the voltmeter in the plate circuit and the ammeter in that circuit.
Letters of a Radio-Engineer to His Son|John Mills

British Dictionary definitions for voltmeter

voltmeter

/ (ˈvəʊltˌmiːtə) /

noun

an instrument for measuring potential difference or electromotive force

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

Science definitions for voltmeter

voltmeter

[ vōlt′mē′tər ]

An instrument used for measuring the difference in voltage between two points in an electric circuit. Voltmeters typically make use of an ammeter that measures current flow across a known resistance inside the voltmeter; direct-current voltages can then be determined by Ohm's law. Digital voltmeters employ A/D converters to provide the numerical value of the voltage displayed. Compare ohmmeter.