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Definition of "cathode" [cath•ode]

  • A negatively charged electrode, as of an electrolytic cell, a storage battery, or an electron tube. (noun)
  • The positively charged terminal of a primary cell or a storage battery that is supplying current. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Use "cathode" in a sentence
  • "The only difference between these two cells was that in Lenard's cell the electrons were taken from the cathode by light, whereas on the "3-electrode lamp" the cathode is a white-hot filament capable of sending into the vacuum currents of much higher intensity."
  • "The same or similar values for the ratio mentioned above have been found for the negative particles with which we are concerned in cathode rays."
  • "For one thing, the free-moving electrons, with which we are concerned in cathode rays and in some types of Becquerel rays, give rise to many interesting problems."