collector

Everyday

1. A collector is a person who collects things of one kind as a hobby, such as stamps, coins, cards or shells. tree →
2. A collector is a person whose job is to collect money or things, such as a tax collector, a ticket collector or a rubbish collector. tree →
3. In science and technology, a collector is a part that gathers something, such as a solar collector that gathers heat from the sun. tree →

In the lessons

In stories a collector is someone who keeps and treasures objects; in everyday life it names jobs that gather money or rubbish. In maths problems collectors often have a number of items that grow or shrink. Phrases: stamp collector, coin collector, debt collector, ticket collector, collector's item.

Examples

• My uncle is a stamp collector with over two thousand stamps. tree →
• The ticket collector checked our tickets on the train. tree →
• A collector paid a lot of money for the old toy car. tree →
• The rubbish collectors come every Tuesday morning. tree →
• This rare card is a real collector's item. tree →
• A solar collector on the roof warms the water. tree →
• The coin collector has 48 coins and buys 12 more. tree →
• The lottery collector pressed me so hard that I thought I should crack. tree →

Note

Countable: a collector, collectors. Spelling ends in «-or», not «-er». A «collector's item» is something rare that collectors want. In maths: «a collector has 48 cards and gets 12 more» means add (48 + 12 = 60); «sells» or «gives away» means subtract.