# calibrate

Pronunciation: say "KAL-uh-brayt" US /ˈkæl.ə.bɹeɪt/, AUS /ˈkæl.ə.bɹæɪt/; UK say "KAL-i-brayt" /ˈkæl.ɪ.bɹeɪt/

## Verb

1. To check or adjust something by comparing it with a standard.
   - Simple: To check something against a correct measure and fix it if it is wrong.
   - _Technicians calibrate each thermometer against a reference instrument before it leaves the factory._
   - _The pitcher spent the first inning calibrating his fastball to the umpire's strike zone._
2. To put the scale markings on a measuring instrument.
   - Simple: To draw the marks and numbers on a tool that measures things.
   - _The dial is calibrated from zero to one hundred in steps of five._
   - _Instrument makers once had to calibrate each thermometer by hand, scratching the degree marks into the glass._
3. To measure the caliber of a gun or a tube.
   - Simple: To measure how wide the inside of a gun barrel or tube is.
   - _Before the museum could identify the cannon, an expert had to calibrate its bore._
   - _The armorer calibrated the captured musket and found its bore was wider than any the army used._

## Origin

Formed from caliber (or calibre) + -ate.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/calibrate (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).