Definition of "carrier"

carrier

/ˈkæ.ɹɪ.ə/

noun
plural carriers
1. A person or object that carries someone or something else.
  Quotations
  The air which is but […] a carrier of the sounds.
  1631, Francis [Bacon], “(please specify |century=I to X)”, in Sylua Syluarum: Or A Naturall Historie. In Ten Centuries. […], 3rd edition, London: […] William Rawley; [p]rinted by J[ohn] H[aviland] for William Lee […]
  1. Ellipsis of aircraft carrier.
    Quotations
    Two weeks later, I reported to Pensacola, Florida, for duty aboard CV-48, the USS Saipan, a boxy old carrier the Navy retired from fleet duty and reassigned for use in training.
    1999 March, Eugene Cernan, Don Davis, The Last Man on the Moon: Astronaut Eugene Cernan and America's Race in Space, 1st edition, New York: St. Martin's Press, page 29
    (science fiction, by extension) A starship designed to carry starfighters
    Quotations
    And each was hideously powerful: an attack carrier could destroy a world, a force of cruisers and spinship destroyers could destroy a sun.
    1990, Dan Simmons, The Fall of Hyperion, 1st edition, New York: Doubleday, page 114
    The first carrier completely ignored us, sir! Blew through the Malta’s debris field and headed straight for Earth!
    2004 November 9, Bungie, Halo 2, v1.0, Microsoft Game Studios, Xbox, level/area: Cairo Station
    In fleet combat, carriers stay clear of battle, launching fighters bearing disruptor torpedoes. Fighters are the primary striking power of the ship; if a carrier enters mass accelerator range of the enemy, things have gone very wrong.It is possible to recover and rearm fighters during combat, though most carriers seal the flight deck and try to stay out of the way. The flight deck is essentially a corridor through the armor and into the heart of the vessel. A single well-placed torpedo is enough to gut a carrier.Alliance carriers are named after great leaders, artists, and intellectuals from human history.
    2008, BioWare, Mass Effect, Redwood City: Electronic Arts, PC, scene: Starships: Carriers Codex entry
2. A carrier pigeon.
3. A person or company in the business of shipping freight.
  Quotations
  The roads [are] crowded with carriers, laden with rich manufactures.
  1727, Jonathan Swift, A Short View of the State of Ireland
4. A signal such as radio, sound, or light that is modulated to transmit information.
5. (telecommunications) A mobile network operator; wireless carrier.
6. (aviation) A certified airline.
  Quotations
  Southwest, the nation’s largest domestic carrier, is installing seats with less cushion and thinner materials — a svelte model known in the business as “slim-line.”
  2013 December 22, Jad Mouawad, Martha C. White, New York Times, retrieved 23 December 2013
7. (engineering) That which drives or carries.
  1. A piece which communicates to an object in a lathe the motion of the faceplate; a lathe dog.
  2. A spool holder or bobbin holder in a braiding machine.
  3. A movable piece in magazine guns which transfers the cartridge to a position from which it can be thrust into the barrel.
  4. A movable piece in a planetary gear train.
  5. (especially automotive) Part of a differential gear assembly that holds gears and their bearings.
8. (chemistry) A catalyst or other intermediary in a chemical reaction.
9. (genetics, pathology) A person or other organism that has a genetic trait, mutation or infection liable to cause a disease, but displays no symptoms.
10. (physics, electronics) A charge carrier.
11. (art, manufacturing) A liquid or gas used as a medium for another substance.