antenna
noun
Simple meaning
An appendage used for sensing on the head of an insect, crab, or other animal.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
antehnuhSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
ænˈtɛnə
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
An appendage used for sensing on the head of an insect, crab, or other animal. [from 17th c.]
figurative
The faculty of intuitive astuteness.
One of a pair of mobile appendages on the head of e.g. insects and crustaceans; typically sensitive to touch and taste
An apparatus to receive or transmit electromagnetic waves and convert respectively to or from an electrical signal.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- A2 · Elementary (estimated)
- Frequency
- Common
- Typical Use
- Varies by meaning
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: An appendage used for sensing on the head of an insect, crab, or other animal. [from 17th c.]
Used this way, antenna is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- Matter-of-fact
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
More ways to use antenna
- “He had a special antenna for public relations.”noun
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
Apparatus / electrical
Appendage / pair
Other combinations
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Word Family
Related forms, grouped by how they connect.
Compound terms
Established multiword terms.
An aerial half a wavelength long consisting of two rods connected to a transmission line at the center.
An antenna that transmits or receives signals only in a narrow angle.
Directional antenna consisting of a parabolic reflector for microwave or radio frequency radiation.
An antenna that sends or receives signals equally in all directions.
An antenna that sends or receives signals equally in all directions.
Omnidirectional antenna comprising the part of a radio receiver by means of which radio signals are received.
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.