Added 9 October 2026
actuator
/ˈæk.tjuː.eɪ.tə(ɹ)/ noun
First recorded: 1652 Wiktionary
noun Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about actuator at Wordnik → Where our words come from →
-
Something that actuates something else.
The mind is the actuator of the body.
- A usually electric device that causes a mechanical device (i.e., a mechanism) to be switched on or off. For example; an electric motor that opens and closes a valve.
- The mechanism that moves the head assembly on a disk drive.
Origin
From actuate + -or. First attested in 1652.
From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)