What does "battery" mean?
A device used to power electric devices, consisting of one or more electrically connected electrochemical cells or (archaically) electrostatic cells.
Battery
/ˈbæt.əɹi/ name, noun, slang
name, noun, slang ·Very common ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A device used to power electric devices, consisting of one or more electrically connected electrochemical cells or (archaically) electrostatic cells.
- Grammar: battery is listed as name, noun, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: accumulator, accumulators, amateur athlete, archer.
- Useful contrasts: fuel cells, magneto.
- Usage evidence: Take the battery off the machine.
How to use "battery"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "battery" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "battery" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "battery" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "battery" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "battery" is acting as name, noun, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "accumulator" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "battery", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A device used to power electric devices, consisting of one or more electrically connected electrochemical cells or (archaically) electrostatic cells. countable
"alkaline battery"
- 2 an assault in which the assailant makes physical contact wordnet
- 3 A device used to power electric devices, consisting of one or more electrically connected electrochemical cells or (archaically) electrostatic cells.; Such a device that has multiple cells. countable, uncountable
"Her phone needs a new battery because its present battery no longer holds a charge well."
- 4 the heavy fire of artillery to saturate an area rather than hit a specific target wordnet
- 5 The energy stored in such a device. informal, metonymically, uncountable
"Her phone did not have enough battery for another phone call."
Show 16 more definitions
- 6 a device that produces electricity; may have several primary or secondary cells arranged in parallel or series wordnet
- 7 The infliction of unlawful physical violence on a person, legally distinguished from assault, which involves the threat of impending violence. countable, uncountable
"Holonym: assault and battery"
- 8 a series of stamps operated in one mortar for crushing ores wordnet
- 9 A coordinated group of artillery weapons, with any of various numbers of guns. countable
"Outside the ancient fort, you can still see worn areas in the stone where the batteries were once placed."
- 10 a collection of related things intended for use together wordnet
- 11 A coordinated group of artillery weapons, with any of various numbers of guns.; Such a group of a certain size (number of guns and artillerists), within a schema of military unit organization. countable, uncountable
"They sent four batteries southward in an attempt to shore up the defenses around the depot."
- 12 a unit composed of the pitcher and catcher wordnet
- 13 An elevated platform on which cannon could be placed. archaic, countable, historical, uncountable
"The construction of advanced batteries mirrored that of those built along the line of circumvallation. [...] Although Mahan demanded that batteries be constructed to exacting dimensions and revetted with gabions, fascines, and sandbags, at Vicksburg the resources at hand determined what materials soldiers used to build what they termed artillery "forts"."
- 14 group of guns or missile launchers operated together at one place wordnet
- 15 An array of similar things. countable, uncountable
"Schoolchildren take a battery of standard tests to measure their progress."
- 16 A set of small cages where hens are kept for the purpose of farming their eggs. countable, uncountable
"‘Do you know how battery chickens live?’"
- 17 The catcher and the pitcher together countable, uncountable
- 18 Two or more pieces working together on the same rank, file, or diagonal countable, uncountable
- 19 A marching percussion ensemble; the section of the drumline that marches on the field during a performance. countable, uncountable
- 20 The state of a firearm or cannon when it is possible to be fired. countable, uncountable
"in battery"
- 21 Apparatus for preparing or serving meals. archaic, countable, uncountable
Proper Noun
- 1 A park in Manhattan, New York City.
Synonyms
All synonymsAntonyms
fuel cellsmagneto
Example
"Take the battery off the machine."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "battery"?
Common synonyms include: accumulator, accumulators, amateur athlete, archer, army, army group.
How do you use "battery" in a sentence?
Take the battery off the machine.
How do you pronounce "battery"?
Pronounced /ˈbæt.əɹi/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
Borrowed from Middle French batterie, from Old French baterie (“action of beating”), from batre (“beat”), from Latin battuō (“beat”), from Gaulish. Doublet of batterie. By surface analysis, batter + -y. The electrical sense was coined by American polymath Benjamin Franklin by analogy with a military battery that his series of Leyden jars resembled.
Etymology 2
Named for a coastal artillery battery that once stood there.