component

[kuhm-poh-nuhnt, kom-]

noun

1. a constituent part; element; ingredient.

2. a part of a mechanical or electrical system.

   They checked the pads, rotors, and other components of my car's brake system.

3. Physics.,  the projection of a vector quantity, as force or velocity, along an axis.

4. Physical Chemistry.,  one of the set of the minimum number of chemical constituents by which every phase of a given system can be described.

5. Mathematics.

   1. a connected subset of a set, not contained in any other connected subset of the set.

   2. a coordinate of a vector.

6. Linguistics.

   1. one of the major subdivisions of a generative grammar.

      base component;

      transformational component;

      semantic component;

      phonological component.

   2. a feature determined by componential analysis.

adjective

1. being or serving as an element (in something larger); composing; constituent.

   the component parts of a computer system.

component

/ kəmˈpəʊnənt, ˌkɒmpəˈnɛnʃəl /

noun

1. a constituent part or aspect of something more complex

   a component of a car

2. Also called: element. any electrical device, such as a resistor, that has distinct electrical characteristics and that may be connected to other electrical devices to form a circuit

3. maths

   1. one of a set of two or more vectors whose resultant is a given vector

   2. the projection of this given vector onto a specified line

4. one of the minimum number of chemically distinct constituents necessary to describe fully the composition of each phase in a system See phase rule

adjective

1. forming or functioning as a part or aspect; constituent

Other Word Forms

• componential adjective
• componental adjective
• componented adjective
• subcomponent noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of component¹

First recorded in 1555–65; from Latin compōnent- (stem of compōnēns, present participle of compōnere “to put together”), equivalent to com- com- + pōn(ere) “to put” + -ent- -ent

Word History and Origins

Origin of component¹

C17: from Latin compōnere to put together, from pōnere to place, put

Synonym Study

See element.

Example Sentences

Like most of We Explore Earth’s outdoor experiences, this one included a cleanup component.

From Los Angeles Times

The European Commission said "threats and intimidation are a regular component of Russia's hostile actions" and that the incident would reinforce its commitment to "ramp up our defence capabilities and support for Ukraine".

From BBC

Each component is tested to ensure it can survive the Moon's harsh conditions.

From BBC

India continues to be reliant on China for its manufacturing, because it sources raw materials and components from there.

From BBC

Its purpose is deceptively simple: take whatever data an agency already has, break it down into its smallest components and then connect the dots.

From Salon

Related Words

• factor 
• ingredient 
• item 
• peripheral 
• piece 
• segment 
• unit