Definition

Noun: A small, portable, and typically cylindrical power source designed to provide electrical energy to a flashlight. It is a type of dry cell battery, meaning its electrolyte is contained in a low-moisture paste, making it safe and easy to handle without risk of leakage under normal conditions.

Usage

This term specifically refers to the battery unit that is inserted into a flashlight to make it function. It denotes the physical object itself. - Always keep a spare flashlight battery in your emergency kit. - The flashlight battery died, so we were left in the dark.

Advanced Usage

• While "flashlight battery" is a specific term, in technical or commercial contexts, it may be specified by standard sizes like AA, C, D, or AAA, which are common types of dry cell batteries used in flashlights.
  • This model requires two D-cell flashlight batteries.

Variants and Related Words

• Dry cell battery: The broader technical category for this type of non-spillable battery.
• Torch battery: The British English equivalent term (a 'torch' is the British word for a flashlight).

Synonyms

• Dry battery
• Cell (in the context of a single electrochemical unit, e.g., "a D cell")

Notes on Meaning

The term is a compound noun. Its meaning is literal and technical, referring directly to the power source for a flashlight. It does not have idiomatic or phrasal verb uses.

Noun

1. a small dry battery containing dry cells; used to power flashlights