Word
capacitor
Phoneticsca·pac·i·tor
US/kəˈpæsətɝ/
UK/kəpˈæsɪtɐ/
Definition
n. a small part in an electronic device that stores electricity for a short time. You can think of it like a tiny, fast-charging battery that releases energy when needed.
n. a passive two-terminal electronic component that stores electrical energy in an electric field. It consists of two conducting plates separated by an insulating material, or dielectric.
Examples
“The technician replaced a broken capacitor on the computer's motherboard.”
“When the power supply fluctuates, the capacitor releases its stored charge to keep the circuit running smoothly.”
“High-capacity capacitors are essential in modern power electronics for filtering noise from signals and stabilizing the voltage delivered to sensitive microprocessors.”
Examples
simple
“The technician replaced a broken capacitor on the computer's motherboard.”
contextual
“When the power supply fluctuates, the capacitor releases its stored charge to keep the circuit running smoothly.”
complex
“High-capacity capacitors are essential in modern power electronics for filtering noise from signals and stabilizing the voltage delivered to sensitive microprocessors.”
Usage
Commonly used with verbs like 'charge', 'discharge', or 'leak'.
Real-World Examples
“Dielectrics are insulating materials that prevent electricity from flowing directly while storing electric charge, and they are key materials in multilayer ceramic capacitors (MLCCs) used in smartphones, electric vehicles and other electronic devices.” Etymology
From capacity + -or. Capacitor replaced the term condenser (coined by Alessandro Volta in 1782) to disambiguate it from steam condenser. The coiner is unknown but the change was recommended in 1926 by British Standard Glossary of Terms in Electrical Engineering.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.