transporter

Everyday

1. A transporter is a large vehicle that carries other vehicles or heavy loads, like a car transporter lorry. tree →
2. A transporter is any person or thing that carries something from place to place. tree →
3. In science fiction, a transporter is an imaginary machine that sends people instantly from one place to another. tree →
4. (biology) A transporter is a tiny part of a cell wall that carries substances in or out of the cell. tree →

In the lessons

In everyday life: car transporters on motorways, tank transporters in the army. In science fiction stories like Star Trek: «beam me up» with a transporter. In science, transporter proteins move things across cell membranes. Phrases: «car transporter», «a transporter bridge».

Examples

• A car transporter carried eight new cars down the motorway. tree →
• The army used a transporter to move the heavy tank. tree →
• In the film, the captain stepped into the transporter and vanished. tree →
• Bees are transporters of pollen from flower to flower. tree →
• The transporter bridge carries cars across the river on a hanging platform. tree →
• Cells have transporters that let sugar in. tree →

Note

Countable: «a transporter», «transporters». Comes from «transport» + «-er» (a person or thing that does). A real-life instant transporter does not exist; it is only in stories.