accelerator
/əkˈsɛl.əˌɹeɪ.tɚ/ noun
Forms accelerators
- noun One who, or that which, accelerates. “The Second World War is said to have been a great accelerator for many scientific findings.”
- noun A device for causing acceleration.
- noun (chemistry) A substance which speeds up chemical reactions.
- noun (vehicles) A pedal causing the vehicle to accelerate when it is pressed. “As soon as you get onto the slipway, push the accelerator.”
- noun (photography) A chemical that reduces development time.
- noun (physics) A device that accelerates charged subatomic particles; a particle accelerator.
- noun (physiology, medicine) A muscle or nerve that speeds the performance of an action.
- noun (computing) An accelerator key.
Synonyms
gas pedal gas throttle go pedal particle accelerator atom smasher accelerator pedal gun throttle valve catalyst
Etymology
* (motor vehicle): First attested in 1900.
Webster’s 1913
- noun One who, or that which, accelerates. Also as an adj.; as, accelerator nerves.
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “accelerator”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details