chronometer
a timepiece or timing device with a special mechanism for ensuring and adjusting its accuracy, for use in determining longitude at sea or for any purpose where very exact measurement of time is required.
any timepiece, especially a wristwatch, designed for the highest accuracy.
Origin of chronometer
1Other words from chronometer
- chron·o·met·ric [kron-uh-me-trik], /ˌkrɒn əˈmɛ trɪk/, chron·o·met·ri·cal, adjective
- chron·o·met·ri·cal·ly, adverb
Words Nearby chronometer
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use chronometer in a sentence
In about two hours afterward the watches and chronometer recommenced going, and the compasses resumed their position.
The Every Day Book of History and Chronology | Joel MunsellBut the terrible question was, how near right is the chronometer?
Captains of Industry | James PartonHe looked at the chronometer on the wall—he had slept twelve hours!
Islands of Space | John W CampbellThe sweep hand on the chronometer made its rounds several times before he answered.
Unwise Child | Gordon Randall GarrettIn the words of a reporter, the place is equally capable of turning out a 'chronometer or a Cunard steamer.'
Heroes of the Telegraph | J. Munro
British Dictionary definitions for chronometer
/ (krəˈnɒmɪtə) /
a timepiece designed to be accurate in all conditions of temperature, pressure, etc, used esp at sea
Derived forms of chronometer
- chronometric (ˌkrɒnəˈmɛtrɪk) or chronometrical, adjective
- chronometrically, adverb
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Scientific definitions for chronometer
[ krə-nŏm′ĭ-tər ]
An extremely accurate clock or other timepiece. Chronometers are used in scientific experiments, navigation, and astronomical observations. It was the invention of a chronometer capable of being used aboard ship, in 1762, that allowed navigators for the first time to accurately determine their longitude at sea.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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