relay.

1. A switch controlled by an electrical signal, often used to control another circuit.

2. The onward transmission of a signal or information through an intermediate point.

3. A group or arrangement in which participants take turns carrying out successive stages of an activity.

Use it for

Words that belong together

• control relay
• relay contacts

On the page

The control relay clicked, but the motor did not start.

Burned relay contacts explained the intermittent failure.

Usage notes

Primary category: sci-fi. Forms: Singular relay; plural relays. Legacy lexical fields mirror sense 1 only. Use numbered sense fields for all meanings. Third-person singular: relays.