collector Hear it!

collector Definition

col·lec·tor (kə lek′tər)

noun

a person or thing that collects; specif.,

  1. a person whose work is collecting taxes, overdue bills, etc.
  2. a person who collects stamps, books, etc. as a hobby
  3. in some transistors, the region or layer of semiconductor material, acting as an electrode, that receives the electric current from the base

Etymology: ME collectour < ML collector

collector Synonyms

collector

n.

  1. One who collects accounts

    representative, collection agent, revenue agent, customs official, tax collector, tax officer, toll collector, bill collector, collection agency, office of internal revenue, revenue office, tax man, dun, exciseman (British), revenuer*; see also agent 1, receiver.

  2. One who collects specimens

    connoisseur, hobbyist, antiquarian, antiquary, authority, fancier, serious amateur, informed amateur, gatherer, discoverer, compiler, finder, assembler, amasser, accumulator, hoarder, anthologist, curator, librarian, pack rat*; see also antiquarian, curator, scientist, specialist.

    Collectors include the following --- of books: bibliophile, bibliopole, bibliotaph, bibliolater, bibliomaniac, bookworm*; of coins: coin collector, numismatist, specialist in numismatics; of eggs: oologist, egger, egg collector, specialist in oology, bird's egg fancier, devotee of egging, egg hound*; of human materials: archaeologist, historiographer, biographer, local historian, ethnologist, ethnographer, ethnographic specialist, specialist in ethnography, ethnohistorian, ethnolinguist, folklorist, curator of folkloristic materials, ethnobotanist; of insects: entomologist, entomographist, lepidopterist, entomographer, specialist in entomology, practitioner of entomology, practitioner of entomography, practitioner of lepidoptery, collector of bugs, collector of insects, collector of butterflies; of rocks: geologist, geognosist, mineralogist, geographer, rock hound*; of plants: botanist, herbalist, ecologist, paleobotanist, curator of a herbarium, curator of herbal collections, physiobotanist; of stamps: stamp collector, philatelist, philatelic dealer, philatelic specialist, expert in philately, specialist in philately.

collector Usage Examples

Converse of object

  • refuse: We're not the old-fashioned dustbin refuse collectors any more.
  • discriminate: It is no wonder that Steiff teddy bears have remained so greatly prized by discriminating collectors.
  • evacuate: There are two types of solar water heating systems: flat plate and evacuated tube collectors.

Adjective modifier

  • avid: He was a prolific film, theater and television actor and an avid collector.
  • solar: The capital costs of plank or panel type of solar collector can be offset against the cost of traditional roof covering.
  • discerning: This CD - Live Style - is a must for any discerning blues collector, Blues - Italian Style - Family Style.
  • bogus: Occasionally houses are targeted by ' bogus collectors ' .
  • antique: House hunters, artists, antique collectors are all particulary catered for.
  • obsessive: I ask him whether he's an obsessive collector.

Modifies a noun

edition: There's also the obligatory collectors edition with stupid amounts of extra stuff.

Noun used with modifier

  • garbage: In addition, the garbage collector must be able to move an object referred to by the native code.
  • refuse: The wheeled bins prevent serious injury for refuse collectors.
  • debt: The University will put your debt into the hands of a debt collector.
  • tax: Remember the tax collector in the parable - " God, have mercy on me a sinner.
  • autograph: Always a problem but much more seriously in recent years the most serious enemy of the genuine autograph collector has emerged; the forger!
  • pylon: There is usually an element of both these types in the electricity pylon number collector.

Possessives

  • item: Some of these are becoming collectors ' items in their own right.
  • edition: The third is the collector's edition SKU with lots of cool bonus stuff for people who like cool bonus stuff.

Preposition: of

  • memorabile: Collectors of movie memorabilia are not just interested in the golden age.
  • taxis: He was the government's official collector of taxes for this part of Suffolk.