reactor

/ɹiˈæktə/ree-AK-tur

/ɹiˈæktɚ/ree-AK-tur

Meaningsomething that acts back

Common meaning: an apparatus where nuclear or chemical reactions run

reagain; back
actdrive, lead; do, actLewis & Short, Latin Dictionary (1879), p. 74 · scan
oragent ending: the doer, or the device that does it

‘again’ + ‘drive, lead’ → reactor

Journey through time

Latinagō, ēgī, āctum‘drive, lead’
Englishreactor‘an apparatus where nuclear or chemical reactions run’ · today

re- also in: react rebel relax repel reply

act also in: actuate exact react agenda exactly

Sources & notes

Meaning: “Meaning” is the sense that emerges from the word’s roots; “Common meaning” is today’s everyday sense. Both written by us.

Pronunciation

UK IPA: converted from the US form by rule (unchecked). Respelling: generated.
No UK recording; the speaker uses your device’s en-GB voice.
US IPA: CMUdict (BSD-2), converted to IPA by rule. Respelling: generated.
No US recording; the speaker uses your device’s en-US voice.

Origin: Built on Latin agō ‘drive, lead; do, act’.

Did you know: our wording, based on Lewis & Short, Latin Dictionary (1879), entry agō, p. 74 · dictionary scan

Roots

agō, ēgī, āctum Latin “drive, lead; do, act”

Related words

actuate agenda exact exactly hyperactive interact overreact pedagogy proactive react reaction reactive

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