atomizer

[ at-uh-mahy-zer ]

noun

1. an apparatus for reducing liquids to a fine spray, as for medicinal or cosmetic application.

atomizer

/ ˈætəˌmaɪzə /

noun

1. a device for reducing a liquid to a fine spray, such as the nozzle used to feed oil into a furnace or an enclosed bottle with a fine outlet used to spray perfumes or medicines

Word History and Origins

Origin of atomizer¹

First recorded in 1860–65; atomize + -er ¹

Example Sentences

Esco Bars, one of Elf Bars’ chief rivals, imported 30 shipments from China this year labeled “atomizers,” a generic type of hardware that turns a liquid into a spray.

From Seattle Times

For a time, my team and I tried an intermediate strategy: Provide an atomizer device that attaches to the syringe and turns the liquid into a mist that can be sprayed into the victim’s nose.

From Washington Post

Or a set of hands delivering puffs of pigment to a balding man’s head with a vintage atomizer.

From Los Angeles Times

Saunders complains, in an entry on atomizers that spray a mist of vermouth, about those who “mistakenly believed that the best martinis should contain only a whisper of vermouth.”

From New York Times

The presentation of a seafood custard capped with cognac foam has a server spritzing Pernod from an antique atomizer.

From Washington Post

Related Words

• aerosol
• sprayer
• sprinkler