monitor

noun mon·i·tor \ ˈmä-nə-tər \

Definition of monitor

1 a :a student appointed to assist a teacher

b :one that warns or instructs

monitors and instructors for troops green in the art of war
—New York Times

c :one that monitors or is used in monitoring: such as

(1) :a cathode-ray tube used for display (as of television pictures or computer information)

(2) :a device for observing a biological condition or function

a heart monitor

2 :monitor lizard

[Monitor, first ship of the type]

a :a heavily armored warship formerly used in coastal operations having a very low freeboard and one or more revolving gun turrets

b :a small modern warship with shallow draft (see ¹draft 8) for coastal bombardment

4 :a raised central portion of a roof having low windows or louvers for providing light and air

—

monitorial

play \ˌmä-nə-ˈtȯr-ē-əl\ adjective

—

monitorship

play \ˈmä-nə-tər-ˌship\ noun

See monitor defined for English-language learners

See monitor defined for kids

Examples of monitor in a Sentence

They watched the press conference on a video monitor in a back room.
We put a baby monitor in the nursery.
U.N. weapons monitors and inspectors.

Recent Examples of monitor from the Web

One key monitor is how anxiety is beginning to manifest in shorter Treasury tenors, which mature around the time the U.S. would be expected to run out of money unless there’s a debt limit increase.

— sophie caronello, Bloomberg.com, "Debt Ceiling Anxiety Tracker: Markets Start to Get a Bit Itchy," 25 Aug. 2017
Before shows, Isbell and the 400 Unit briefly congregate on the side of the stage to make sure everyone's ready and their in-ear monitors are functioning.

— matt wake, AL.com, "How Jason Isbell's 400 Unit became the E Street Band of their era," 23 Aug. 2017
A bank of 11 computer monitors inside the Coral Gables Otálvaro family home gave South Florida an early entry into the fledgling world of online trading.

— howard cohen, miamiherald, "He pioneered the world of online trading from Miami, not Wall Street," 23 Aug. 2017
The VAR, a fifth member of the officiating crew that is not on the field of play, sits in a video booth and watches the game on monitors with every available camera angle from the match broadcast.

— patrick brennan, Cincinnati.com, "VAR is here: What you need to know," 5 Aug. 2017
Some solutions include eating with the teacher or eating with the nurse or lunch monitor — even eating with a friend.

— susan moskop, chicagotribune.com, "How to address a child’s nutrition at school," 1 Aug. 2017
The Estill County dump that accepted radioactive waste has agreed to install monitors, fund school radon testing and develop a corrective action plan, under an agreement with the Kentucky Energy and Environment Cabinet announced in November.

— james bruggers, The Courier-Journal, "Kentucky accused of secrecy in radioactive fracking waste dumping case," 19 July 2017
So, in addition to cats and dogs, their menagerie has included a pigeon, a goat, a potbellied big, a monitor lizard and other animals that end up as household pets.

— erin hegarty, Naperville Sun, "Summer a hot time for pet owners to 'clean house' of their cats and dogs," 18 July 2017
Seattle officials agreed in 2012 to an independent monitor and federal court oversight of the department after a federal investigation found Seattle officers routinely used excessive force.

— Washington Post, "Recording: Woman brandished shears in past police encounter," 19 June 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'monitor.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of monitor

Latin, one that warns, overseer, from monēre to warn — more at mind

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1530

See Words from the same year

Other Computer-Related Terms

adware, flash, kludge, phishing, recursive, router

monitor

verb

Definition of monitor

monitored; monitoring play \ˈmä-nə-t(ə-)riŋ\

transitive verb

:to watch, keep track of, or check usually for a special purpose

Nurses monitored the patient's heart rate.

See monitor defined for English-language learners

Examples of monitor in a Sentence

Nurses constantly monitored the patient's heart rate.
We're in a good position to monitor and respond to customer concerns.
Government agents have been monitoring the enemy's radio communications.

Recent Examples of monitor from the Web

Even as our unwitting alterations to Earth’s carbon and hydrological cycles slowly make storms more damaging, our ability to monitor our planet from space and make reliable short term forecasts have equipped us enormously to withstand them.

— david grinspoon, The Atlantic, "Hurricane Harvey Lays Bare Our New Bargain With Nature," 30 Aug. 2017
Bob Kerlik, vice president of media relations for Pittsburgh International Airport, says the airport will monitor the length of security queues, and only issue myPITpasses if the lines are moving along quickly.

— nikki ekstein, The Seattle Times, "Pittsburgh airport to test letting nonfliers get past security," 29 Aug. 2017
Leagues and teams have hired full-time staff to monitor comments by athletes.

— kevin casas, star-telegram, "Can sore losers erode the pro sports landscape?," 26 Aug. 2017
These settings can be hard to monitor, but a Kaiser Health News review of government inspection records sheds light on what can go wrong.

— melissa bailey, Kaiser Health News, "Dying At Home In An Opioid Crisis: Hospices Grapple With Stolen Meds," 22 Aug. 2017
A team from Stanford University recently investigated how good some leading consumer fitness trackers were at monitoring heart rate and calculating calories burned, or energy expenditure.

— lacy schley, Discover Magazine, "How Accurate Is Your Fitness Tracker?," 21 Aug. 2017
Because ectopic pregnancies can be wily and recalcitrant, sometimes requiring additional doses, the patient is monitored for days or weeks, until her blood is free of any trace of pregnancy hormones.

— joanna petrone, Longreads, "Pregnant, then Ruptured," 18 Aug. 2017
That way, the company can monitor for scams and have a copy of your correspondence.

— taysha murtaugh, Country Living, "How to Spot a Scam on Amazon—Before It Costs You," 18 Aug. 2017
Between 2006 and 2016 about 76 percent of 8,347 people monitored were compliant while 24 percent were not.

— andrew wolfson, The Courier-Journal, "Repeat drunken drivers to get ankle bracelets that monitor sweat for alcohol," 16 Aug. 2017

Origin and Etymology of monitor

see ¹monitor

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1924

See Words from the same year

monitor Synonyms

Synonyms

cover, watch, keep an eye on

Related Words

surveil; eye; behold, espy, look, note, notice, observe, regard, see, sight, spy, view, witness; gape, gawk, gaze, glare, goggle, peer, rubberneck, stare; glance, glimpse, peek, peep

MONITOR Defined for English Language Learners

monitor

verb

Definition of monitor for English Language Learners

: to watch, observe, listen to, or check (something) for a special purpose over a period of time

MONITOR Defined for Kids

monitor

noun mon·i·tor \ ˈmä-nə-tər \

Definition of monitor for Students

1 :a video screen used for display (as of television pictures or computer information)

2 :a student in a school picked for a special duty (as keeping order)

3 :a person or thing that watches or checks something

a heart monitor

monitor

verb

Definition of monitor for Students

monitored; monitoring

:to watch or check for a special reason

Nurses monitored the patient's heart rate.

Medical Dictionary

monitor

noun mon·i·tor \ ˈmän-ət-ər \

medical Definition of monitor

:one that monitors; especially :a device for observing or measuring a biologically important condition or function

a heart monitor

monitor

transitive verb

medical Definition of monitor

monitored; monitoring play \ˈmän-ət-ə-riŋ, ˈmän-ə-triŋ\

1 :to watch, observe, or check closely or continuously

monitor a patient's vital signs

2 :to test for intensity of radiations especially if due to radioactivity

Learn More about monitor

Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for monitor Spanish Central: Translation of monitor Nglish: Translation of monitor for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of monitor for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about monitor

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Definition of monitor

monitorial

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Origin and Etymology of monitor

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monitor

Definition of monitor

Examples of monitor in a Sentence

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Origin and Etymology of monitor

monitor Synonyms

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MONITOR Defined for English Language Learners

monitor

Definition of monitor for English Language Learners

MONITOR Defined for Kids

monitor

Definition of monitor for Students

monitor

Definition of monitor for Students

Medical Dictionary

monitor

medical Definition of monitor

monitor

medical Definition of monitor

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