reactor

noun

re·​ac·​tor rē-ˈak-tər 

1

: one that reacts

2

: a device (such as a coil, winding, or conductor of small resistance) used to introduce reactance into an alternating-current circuit

3

a

: a vat for an industrial chemical reaction

b

: a device for the controlled release of nuclear energy (as for producing heat)

Examples of reactor in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Operating the plant safely would require a safe, constant power supply to avoid a reactor meltdown, as well as the restoration of sufficient water supplies for cooling the plant. —Lauren Kent, CNN, 20 Mar. 2025

Without oxygen, plastics in the reactor don’t catch fire and emit fumes into the air. —Alexander Kaplitz, The Conversation, 18 Mar. 2025

Sell has called the round-the-clock needs of data centers a good fit for small reactors. —Ben Geman, Axios, 14 Mar. 2025

Here, a magnetic field and mechanical compression are used to create fusion conditions, aka extreme heat, for compressing plasma inside a reactor to enable the production and extraction of energy. —New Atlas, 12 Mar. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1890, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing reactor

• atomic reactor
• hyper-reactor
• nuclear reactor

Rhymes for reactor

• attractor
• cofactor
• compactor
• contactor
• contractor
• distractor
• extractor
• impactor
• protractor
• redactor
• refractor
• retractor

Kids Definition

reactor

noun

re·​ac·​tor rē-ˈak-tər 

1

: one that reacts

2

: a device for the controlled release of nuclear energy (as for producing heat)

Medical Definition

reactor

noun

re·​ac·​tor rē-ˈak-tər 

1

: one that reacts: as

a

: a chemical reagent

b

: an individual reacting to a stimulus

c

: an individual reacting positively to a foreign substance (as in a test for disease)

reactors to tuberculin

2

a

: a piece of equipment in which a chemical reaction and especially an industrial chemical reaction is carried out

b

: a device for the controlled release of nuclear energy (as for producing heat)