Operant

adj, noun

adj, noun ·3 syllables ·Uncommon ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    An operative person or thing.
  2. 2
    Any of a class of behaviors that produce consequences by operating (i.e., acting) upon the environment.
Adjective
  1. 1
    That operates to produce an effect.

    "thy most operant poison"

Adjective
  1. 1
    having influence or producing an effect wordnet

Synonyms

All synonyms
operativeactoragentarchitectauthorconductor

Example

More examples

"I tell you frankly, if Paul Aubry is guilty I hope is convicted and punished; but if one of the others is guilty I hope he—or she—is punished, and if I knew anything operant to that end I certainly would not withhold it."

Etymology

From Middle English operant, from Latin operāns.

Related phrases

operant conditioningskinner box

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.