conduit

noun

con·​duit ˈkän-ˌdü-ət 

-ˌdyü-,

 also  -dwət,

-dət

1

: a natural or artificial channel through which something (such as a fluid) is conveyed

a conduit for rainwater

2

: a pipe, tube, or tile for protecting electric wires or cables

3

: a means of transmitting or distributing

a conduit for illicit payments

a conduit of information

4

archaic : fountain

Synonyms

• channel
• duct
• leader
• line
• penstock
• pipe
• trough
• tube

Examples of conduit in a Sentence

the major conduit for carrying water to the military base

water flowed along the conduit to the fountain

Recent Examples on the Web

LLMs and machine learning are merely the conduit through which benefits to the customer are delivered. —Justin Warren, Forbes.com, 28 May 2025

His strained, sandpaper-coarse timbre served as an ideal conduit for songs concerned with boisterous revelries, shady agreements, licentious intentions and musical pleasures. —Bob Gendron, Chicago Tribune, 25 May 2025

One app, which, in 2023, became the main conduit by which migrants could seek asylum in the U.S. —Rachel Monroe, New Yorker, 10 May 2025

The bridge is just north of the Highway 50 ramps and is the conduit between other major thoroughfares like Fair Oaks Boulevard and Folsom Boulevard. —Ariane Lange, Sacbee.com, 8 May 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English conduyt, condyt, cundyte "channel or pipe for conveying water, act of escorting for protection" borrowed from Anglo-French conduit, condet "channel for water, guide, escort party," (also continental Old French), noun derivative from conduit, past participle of conduire "to guide, escort," going back to Latin condūcere "to bring together, join, hire, accept a contract for" (Medieval Latin also "to lead, escort, provide a channel for [water]") — more at conduce

Note: The senses of the vernacular word conduit parallel those of Medieval Latin conductus, conductum—see conduct entry 2. The verb conduct entry 1 and the nouns conduct entry 2 and conductor all had vernacular counterparts in Middle English and early Modern English—conduiten, conduit and conduytour—taken from Anglo-French. Of these only conduit has survived in Modern English, and with the restricted sense "channel for water."

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

conduit

noun

con·​duit ˈkän-ˌd(y)ü-ət 

 also  -d(w)ət

1

: a channel through which water or other fluid is carried

2

: a pipe, tube, or tile for protecting electric wires or cables