ˈeləˌvād.ə(r), -ātə- noun
( -s )
1. : one that raises or lifts up anything: as
a. : an endless belt or chain conveyor with cleats, scoops, or buckets for raising material
b. : a cage or platform and its hoisting machinery (as in a building or mine) for conveying persons or goods to or from different levels — see hydraulic elevator
c. : a building for elevating, storing, discharging, and sometimes processing grain
d. : a compressed-air lift or pump for raising acids
e. : a tool or device for raising or lowering pipe or rods out of or into a well
2. : a movable auxiliary airfoil usually attached to the tail plane the function of which is to impress a pitching moment on an airplane thus producing rotation about its lateral axis, positive or downward deflection of the elevator causing the airplane to dive, and negative or upward deflection causing it to climb
3. : a dental instrument for removing the roots of teeth
4. : a surgical instrument for raising a depressed part (as of a bone) or for separating contiguous parts
5. printing : either of two mechanisms in keyboard slugcasting machines for raising set matrices, one used for casting and the other for distribution