el·e·va·tor

[el-uh-vey-ter]
noun
1.
a person or thing that elevates or raises.
2.
a moving platform or cage for carrying passengers or freight from one level to another, as in a building.
3.
any of various mechanical devices for raising objects or materials.
4.
a building in which grain is stored and handled by means of mechanical elevator and conveyor devices.
5.
Aeronautics. a hinged horizontal surface on an airplane or the like, used to control the longitudinal inclination and usually placed at the tail end of the fuselage.

Origin:
1640–50; < Late Latin ēlevātor, equivalent to ēlevā(re) (see elevate) + -tor -tor

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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00:10
Elevator is always a great word to know.
So is simple harmonic motion. Does it mean:
apparatus with suspended point mass, frictionless thread, constant length and periodic motion
vibratory motion in system in which restoring force is proportional to displacement from equilibrium
Collins
World English Dictionary
elevator (ˈɛlɪˌveɪtə) [Click for IPA pronunciation guide]
 
n
1.  a person or thing that elevates
2.  chiefly (US) a mechanical hoist for raising something, esp grain or coal, often consisting of a chain of scoops linked together on a conveyor belt
3.  chiefly (US), (Canadian) Also called (in Britain and certain other countries): lift a platform, compartment, or cage raised or lowered in a vertical shaft to transport persons or goods in a building
4.  chiefly (US), (Canadian) a large granary equipped with an elevator and, usually, facilities for cleaning and grading the grain
5.  any muscle that raises a part of the body
6.  a surgical instrument for lifting a part of the body
7.  a control surface on the tailplane of an aircraft, for making it climb or descend

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

elevator
1640s, originally of muscles, from L. elevator, from elevare (see elevate). As a name for a mechanical lift (originally for grain) attested from 1787. Elevator music is from 1970s. Elevator shoes patented 1940.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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American Heritage
Medical Dictionary

elevator el·e·va·tor (ěl'ə-vā'tər)
n.

  1. A surgical instrument used to elevate tissues or to raise a sunken part, such as a depressed fragment of bone.

  2. A dental instrument used to remove teeth or parts of teeth that cannot be gripped with a forceps or to loosen teeth and roots before using forceps.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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Example sentences
On the west side of the building, elevator and stair landings overlook a gallery.
Take the elevator inside to the top, for a fine view of the port.
Theoretical lobby with putative elevator leads to five notional floor-thru
  lofts.
Since the elevator was broken, he climbed up all seven floors, only to collapse
  in a chair when he arrived.
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