Derivators

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A group of tools or devices used to derive or extract something from a primary source
2. items or entities that facilitate the formation of new words or concepts from existing ones
3. participants in a process or system that produce derivatives or results from a given input

Etymology: "Derivator" is a fairly modern technical coinage rather than an ancient one. It is formed from "derive," which came into English from Latin "derivare," meaning "to lead off" or "to draw off" a stream, from "de-" (away from) and "rivus" (stream). The original sense of "derive" was literal: channelling water from a river. Its figurative sense of drawing something out of a source, such as a word derived from a root, developed in English during the late Middle Ages. The suffix "-ator," from Latin agent-noun endings like "creator" or "narrator," marks a person or thing that performs an action. Adding it to "derive" produces a term for an instrument or agent that does the drawing-off. Its use is largely confined to technical and scientific writing, where it names a set of devices that extract a quantity or signal from a primary source. Because it is a deliberate formation rather than a word that grew through speech, its exact date of first use is uncertain, and it does not appear in most general dictionaries.

Synonyms: derivers, originators, creators