Definition

Noun: A continuous moving band, typically made of a durable material like rubber or metal, used for transporting objects or materials from one place to another, especially within an industrial or production setting.

Usage

A "conveyor belt" is used to move items efficiently over a fixed path. It is a fundamental component in systems for assembly, packaging, sorting, and transportation.

Examples

• Noun:
  • The assembled cars move along the conveyor belt to the next station.
  • At the airport, luggage is placed on a conveyor belt to be transported to the plane.
  • The factory uses a conveyor belt to move boxes from the packing area to the shipping dock.

Advanced Usage

• "to be on a conveyor belt": Used metaphorically to describe a process that is routine, impersonal, or where people/things are handled in a standardized, sequential manner.
  • The new students felt like they were on a conveyor belt during the registration process.

Variants and Related Words

• Conveyor (also Conveyer) (n): A person or thing that conveys; often used interchangeably with "conveyor belt" but can refer to the entire transport system.
• Conveyor system (n): A broader mechanical system that may include multiple belts, rollers, or other mechanisms for moving materials.

Synonyms

• Assembly line: A series of workers and machines in a factory where a product is assembled progressively as it passes from one station to the next. (Note: An assembly line often conveyor belts.)
• Transport belt: A less common synonym emphasizing the transportation function.

Related Phrases

• Conveyor belt sushi (n): A style of sushi restaurant where plates of sushi are placed on a rotating conveyor belt that passes by the customers' tables.
  • We decided to eat at a conveyor belt sushi restaurant.

Idioms

• A conveyor belt of [something]: A continuous and seemingly endless series of similar things or people.
  • The clinic dealt with a conveyor belt of patients all morning.

Noun

1. a moving belt that transports objects (as in a factory)