generator

A generator is something that produces or creates something else. In everyday life, the most common meaning is a machine that makes electricity. People use one during a power outage, at a work site, or in a place without wall outlets. These machines usually change mechanical energy into electrical energy. "The storm knocked out the power, so we started the generator."

The word also has a broader use. It can refer to any device, system, or thing that produces a result. A computer program can be a random number generator. In science or engineering, the term may describe equipment that creates power, signals, heat, or other output.

It can also be used in a more figurative way. An event, tool, or person may be called a generator of ideas, excitement, or change if it keeps producing them. In that sense, the word suggests a steady source of something new.

So the idea behind "generator" is simple: it names a machine, tool, system, or source that makes something happen or brings something into existence.