antenna
n. countablen. a metal rod or wire used to send or receive radio and television signals. It can also refer to the long, thin parts on an insect's head used for feeling things.
n. a metallic apparatus used for the transmission or reception of electromagnetic waves. In a biological context, refers to a pair of mobile appendages on the heads of insects and crustaceans used for sensory perception.
The radio signal is weak because the antenna is broken.
The technician climbed onto the roof to adjust the antenna for better satellite reception.
Modern telecommunications rely on sophisticated antenna arrays to manage the vast amount of data transmitted wirelessly across urban environments every second.
From Latin antenna, antemna (“yard, sailyard; pole”). First used in this sense as a Latin word in the 15th century and as an English word by the end of the 17th century.
The plural form is 'antennas' for electronic devices, but 'antennae' is preferred in biological and scientific contexts.