voltmeter

American  

[vohlt-mee-ter] / ˈvoʊltˌmi tər /

noun

Electricity.

1. a calibrated instrument for measuring the potential difference between two points.

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voltmeter British  

/ ˈvəʊltˌmiːtə /

noun

1. an instrument for measuring potential difference or electromotive force

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voltmeter Scientific  

/ vōlt′mē′tər /

1. An instrument used for measuring the difference in voltage between two points in an electric circuit. Voltmeters typically make use of an ammeter that measures current flow across a known resistance inside the voltmeter; direct-current voltages can then be determined by Ohm's law. Digital voltmeters employ A/D converters to provide the numerical value of the voltage displayed.

2. Compare ohmmeter

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Etymology

Origin of voltmeter

First recorded in 1880–85; volt ¹ + -meter

Example Sentences

A voltmeter in the external circuit allows measurement of the potential difference between the two half-cells.

From Textbooks • Feb. 14, 2019

A voltmeter is placed in parallel with the voltage source to receive full voltage and must have a large resistance to limit its effect on the circuit.

From Textbooks • Aug. 12, 2015

Figure 21.37 An analog voltmeter attached to a battery draws a small but nonzero current and measures a terminal voltage that differs from the emf of the battery.

From Textbooks • Aug. 12, 2015

The voltage across the device is not the same as when the voltmeter is out of the circuit.

From Textbooks • Aug. 12, 2015

In the case of the voltmeter, as you know, we have 206a large resistance in series with the current-measuring part for the reason of which I told in Letter 8.

From Letters of a Radio-Engineer to His Son by Mills, John