Definition

1. Noun:
   • A person who collects things: A collector is someone who systematically gathers and keeps items of a particular type, often as a hobby or for study.
   • A person who is employed to collect payments: A collector is someone whose job is to gather money owed, such as for rent, taxes, or debts.
   • A crater that has collected cosmic material: In astronomy, a collector is an impact crater that has accumulated meteoritic or cosmic material over time.
   • The electrode in a transistor: In electronics, the collector is the terminal through which a primary flow of charge carriers leaves the active region of a bipolar junction transistor.

Examples

• A person who collects things:
  • She is an avid stamp collector and has albums from all over the world.
  • The museum exhibition was curated with help from a private art collector.
• A person who is employed to collect payments:
  • The tax collector visited the business to ensure all dues were paid.
  • He worked as a debt collector for a financial agency.
• A crater that has collected cosmic material:
  • Scientists study lunar collectors to understand the history of meteorite impacts.
• The electrode in a transistor:
  • In this circuit diagram, the signal output is taken from the collector.

Advanced Usage

• "Avid collector": A very enthusiastic and dedicated person who collects items.
  • He is an avid collector of vintage vinyl records.
• "Private collector": An individual who collects items for their personal collection, not as an institution.
  • The painting was sold at auction to a private collector.

Variants and Related Words

• Collect (verb): To bring or gather together.
• Collection (noun): A group of objects or an act of collecting.
• Collectible (noun/adjective): An item worth collecting; suitable for collecting.

Synonyms

• Gatherer: One who collects or gathers.
• Accumulator: One who amasses or collects items over time.
• Compensated Agent: A formal term for someone employed to collect payments (e.g., tax agent, revenue officer).

Related Phrases

• Ticket collector: A person who checks or collects tickets on public transport.
  • The ticket collector reminded passengers to have their passes ready.
• Dust collector: (Idiomatic) An object that tends to gather dust, often because it is unused.
  • That old exercise bike has become a dust collector in the garage.

Idioms

• "A collector's item": An object rare or valuable enough to be sought by collectors.
  • This first-edition book is a true collector's item.

Noun

1. the electrode in a transistor through which a primary flow of carriers leaves the region between the electrodes
2. a crater that has collected cosmic material hitting the earth
3. a person who is employed to collect payments (as for rent or taxes)
4. a person who collects things