associator
|as-so-ci-a-tor|
🇺🇸
/əˈsoʊ.si.eɪ.tɚ/
🇬🇧
/əˈsəʊ.si.eɪ.tə/
(associate)
connected
Etymology
'associator' ultimately comes from Latin via the verb 'associate' + the agentive suffix '-or'. The verb 'associate' derives from Latin 'associare' (ad- 'to' + socius 'companion').
'associate' entered English through Old French/Middle English (Old French 'associer' / Late Latin 'associare'), and the agent noun 'associator' was formed in English by adding the Latin-derived suffix '-or' to create 'associator'.
Originally related to 'joining' or 'being a companion' (to join with a companion), it evolved to mean 'one who links or connects' and more specialized senses such as an internal linker of ideas in psychology.
Meanings by Part of Speech
Noun 1
a person who forms connections or links ideas, people, or things; someone who associates (general sense).
As an associator, she quickly linked the new data to earlier research findings.
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Noun 2
(Psychology, neuroscience) A person (e.g., a synesthete) who experiences associations internally rather than projecting them externally; someone whose mental associations are experienced as internal images or links.
In studies of grapheme–color synesthesia, an associator reports seeing colors in the mind rather than projected onto letters.
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Last updated: 2025/11/04 09:52